10 Years of Telangana: Led by TS-iPass, state garners Rs 2,61,732 cr investment in industrial sector

HYDERABAD: Have you ever heard of a state in India that bestowed prospective investors with a right of clearance, and the erring government officers penalised for not clearing the file in time?

Yes, it happens in the progressive state of Telangana.

All the applicants wishing to set up industries in the state were assured of clearance in a stipulated time frame. Mega projects, on the other hand, will get automatic approvals on submission of the self-certification.

This innovative and path-breaking change in approvals of new and expanding industries was made possible with the passing of TS-iPass (Telangana State Industrial Project Approval and Self Certification System). The Telangana government, immediately after the formation of the state, decided to transform it as the most favoured destination for investment.

The government of Telangana enacted the TS-iPass Act for providing all approvals to entrepreneurs at a single point within set time limits based on a self-certification furnished by the entrepreneurs. There is a provision for imposing penalties on the officers who fail to provide the clearance within a set time. The system has been appreciated all over the country and it has been treated as the best practice under ‘Ease of Doing Business’ by the Government of India.

As on May 11, 2023 more than 23,065 units with a proposed investment of Rs 2,61,732 crore and proposed employment of 15,74,798 were given approvals. A total of 18,587 units with an investment of Rs 1,54,690 crore and providing employment to 9,13,386 persons have commenced operations. Almost 81 percent of units that have obtained approvals have commenced operations.

Innovate, Incubate, Incorporate

With a vision of ‘Innovate, Incubate and Incorporate’ the new Industrial Policy 2015 provided a business regulatory environment where doing business has become as easy as shaking hands. As a result, the meager investment of Rs 1,806 crore providing employment to just 5,051 people in 2014, transformed into Rs 2,59,926 crore of investment providing employment to 15,69,747 young men and women by 2023

Incentives through T-IDEA

T-IDEA (Telangana State Industrial Development and Entrepreneur Advancement) Incentive Scheme of 2014 was drafted to provide incentives to entrepreneurs. The incentives include investment subsidy, land cost reimbursement, stamp duty reimbursement, SGST reimbursement, power cost reimbursement, ‘Pavala Vaddi’, and many more. The government will provide tailor-made benefits to the Megaprojects with an investment of Rs 200 crore and above or provide employment to more than 1,000 persons The government from June 2, 2014, to March 31, 2023, provided Rs 3,654.57 crore as an incentive under the scheme by sanctioning 25,068 proposals.

T-PRIDE and social justice

As social Justice was the foundation of the new state of Telangana, the new Industrial Policy gave several additional benefits for entrepreneurs belonging to weaker sections. An exclusive policy, T-PRIDE (Telangana State Program for Rapid Incubation of Dalit Entrepreneurs), has been announced offering special incentives such as preferential allotment of industrial plots in industrial parks, providing direct funding and margin money, arranging sub-contracts with large industries, creating a pool of civil contractors and special incentives are also being offered to the women entrepreneurs.

From June 2, 2014, to March 31, 2023, incentives worth Rs 1,381.8 crore were sanctioned to 28,184 units promoted by SC entrepreneurs; incentives for an amount of Rs 1,448.33 crore were sanctioned to 31,057 units promoted by ST entrepreneurs, and incentives for an amount of Rs. 114.64 crore were sanctioned to 2,104 units promoted by PHC entrepreneurs.

Ease of Doing Business

For the year 2016, Telangana secured the first rank in Ease of Doing Business-2016, with a score of 98.78 percent. Telangana stood among the top states in the subsequent years with second rank in 2017 and third rank in 2018-19. For the year 2020, the government has dispensed a ranking system and introduced a grading system, in which Telangana stood among the six top-achieving states.

Simplificaion of rules

To minimize physical interface touchpoints between government and citizens and also to provide hassle-free delivery of services to citizens a total of 1,278 compliances about seven departments are identified for reduction and all compliances are reduced as per the guidelines given by DPIIT of the central government.