‘Ease formalities to encourage start-ups’

MADURAI: The Tamil Nadu Foodgrains Merchants Association Limited (TNFMAL), Madurai, has urged the state government to ease the formalities to encourage business start-ups and to achieve industrial growth.

There are certain factors such as delay in time for granting permission either for construction of new industry or factory or expansion of the existing industry. New industries could be an important driver of long-term economic growth, SVSS Velshankar, president, TNFMAL, Madurai, said on Tuesday.

Despite having required lands, it is taking around six months for private industries to convert the land into industrial space. Even after granting permission to start an industry or a factory, it takes around six more months to one year for getting approval from the Local Planning Authority for the building plan, Velshankar pointed out.

He said permissions are mandatory from Pollution Control Board, Industrial Safety and Health Department, Tangedco and Fire and Rescue Services Department, but the business entrepreneurs have been facing delays on these fronts.

To get permission from all these departments, entrepreneurs were forced to keep moving from one place to another and spend a lot of time and money. Such factors cause a demoralising effect on entrepreneurs, who after some stage decided to abort the venture.

Online facility is available in all departments for seeking permissions, but still there’s a situation that entrepreneurs have to visit the department office concerned, physically. To avoid these, a single window system should be made functional effectively and ensure permissions were granted online within 30 days of application. These procedures would create a congenial atmosphere and also lead to rapid increase in the growth of industries, especially in the south Tamil Nadu, he said.