VIJAYAWADA: Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu held a comprehensive review meeting with a central delegation led by Steel Secretary Sandeep Poundrik to discuss the implementation of De-Regulation Phase-2 in Andhra Pradesh.
The meeting, attended by Chief Secretary Sai Prasad and senior officials from multiple departments, focused on accelerating industrial approvals, eliminating outdated laws, and creating a more investor-friendly environment.
The Chief Minister stressed that unnecessary delays in granting permission for industries must be eliminated.
He directed officials to simplify procedures, reduce the number of regulations from over 800 to fewer than 100, and limit licenses to single digits.
He also stressed that business registrations should have lifetime validity, and the entire approval process should be digitised to ensure transparency and efficiency.
Officials presented a detailed progress report, noting that under Phase 1, twenty-three priority items across seven departments had been completed. Phase 2 includes 28 additional items, of which 18 have already been implemented.
The target is to complete all 47 recommendations by May 31, 2026.
Chief Minister reviewed the reforms introduced so far, the changes suggested by the Centre, and the future action plan.
Naidu highlighted the need to abolish outdated laws such as the Nala Act and move towards demand-based zoning to ease land use.
He instructed officials to simplify land allocation in industrial parks and clusters, ensuring faster allotment to investors.
He also called for ordinances to support Phase-2 implementation and directed that overlapping permissions within departments be merged. Sector-specific reforms were discussed, including adapting fire safety regulations to suit state requirements, streamlining environmental clearances, and expediting electricity connections.
The Chief Minister proposed affidavit-based business startups, reduced inspection frequency, and faster grievance redressal to support MSMEs.
Digital governance was identified as a key pillar of reform. Naidu emphasised integrating services into platforms like Mee Seva, Single Desk Portal, and WhatsApp Governance. He explained that digitisation would reduce workload, enhance transparency, and improve tracking of applications.
Steel Secretary Poundrik praised Andhra Pradesh for outperforming central benchmarks in deregulation and expressed confidence that the state would complete Phase-2 within the stipulated timeline. He confirmed that Phase-3, focusing on technology would commence in June. He said the AP is moving from Ease of Doing Business to Speed of Doing Business.