Support Deregulation Cell to alleviate compliance burden on businesses

Union Cabinet Secretary Dr TV Somanathan held a video-conference with Chief Secretaries on Tuesday on Ease of Doing Business. During the National Conference of Chief Secretaries held under the chairmanship of Prime Minister Narendra Modi from December 13-15 last year, it was decided to set up a Deregulation Cell under a secretary-level coordinating officer in the Cabinet Secretariat to assist the States in reforming and simplifying the rules and procedures related to Ease of Doing Business.
The Deregulation Cell’s purpose is to assist States in reforming and simplifying business regulations. Additionally, a Committee of Secretaries, acting as a task force for compliance reduction and de-regulation, was formed. During the video conference, Dr. Somanathan emphasised the importance of supporting the Deregulation Cell to alleviate the compliance burden on businesses.
He announced that a special task force committee would be visiting the States starting in March. The Chief Secretaries were encouraged to arrange interdepartmental meetings to facilitate these visits. Dr Somanathan also welcomed the sharing of best practices among States regarding Ease of Doing Business.
Andhra Pradesh Chief Secretary K Vijayanand highlighted the State’s proactive measures under the Reduction of Compliance Burden (RCB) programme. He reported that Andhra Pradesh has successfully reduced 632 compliance requirements across more than 60 regulations. The State government has also established an Empowered Committee, chaired by the Chief Secretary, to oversee the implementation of this programme and review compliance reduction proposals from various departments.
Vijayanand reiterated the State’s commitment to making Andhra Pradesh the most attractive investment destination in India. Since the beginning of 2025, over 60 cumbersome compliance requirements have been eliminated across seven departments.
He directed departments to address remaining compliance issues by the first week of March, in preparation for an upcoming review by a Government of India team.
The Chief Secretary concluded by stating that the visiting team aims to exchange the best practices and provide recommendations to enhance the business environment further.
Special Chief Secretaries Anantharam, B Rajasekhar, and Vani Prasad, Principal Secretaries Mukesh Kumar Meena, Shashi Bhushan Kumar, and S Suresh Kumar, Secretaries Dr N Yuvraj, MM Nayak, and Saurav Gaur and other officials participated in the video-conference.