First cut of 'genuine' single window for approvals likely from March 2021: Piyush Goyal

New Delhi [India], December 16 (ANI): Union Minister for Commerce and Industry Piyush Goyal on Tuesday said that the first cut of a genuine single window is likely to ready by March or April 2021 to ease the compliance burden on the industry.
Speaking at the Assocham foundation week 2020, Goyal said that the Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT) is making a genuine effort to provide a single-window on approvals amongst various ministries at the Centre, compliance of various laws in India and also at state and local levels.
"With the policies and framework of government working towards easing your compliance requirements, making everything digital and online, reducing the burden of frequent renewals of licenses and government clearances. We are trying to make a single window. I am putting my best efforts to make a single window. Historically, we have seen windows which when you open you would see ten doors behind them," he said.
"The Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade is making a genuine effort to provide a single window on approvals amongst various ministries at the Centre, compliance of various laws in India and also at the state and local level. We are trying to integrate this. I hope that by March or April, you will see the first cut of a genuine single window," he added.
Goyal, who also holds the portfolio of the Ministry of Railways, said that the country will overtake last year's performance on railway freight by February.
"Yesterday (on Monday), I had a review meeting and I pulled up railway officials that the policy is already overdue. I have given them until, I think, 25th (December) to finalise the policy for greater private sector engagement and ownership of entire railway lines," he said.
"We have already liberalised policy on freight in a very big way. We have taken a number of steps due to which from August onwards, we are continuously growing in railway freight over last year. Currently, railway freight in COVID year is only 4 per cent less on year over year basis until yesterday (Monday). We hope that by February we will overtake last year's performance on railway freight," he said. (ANI)