A jump of 79 positions to 63 in 2019 from 142 in 2014 in World Bank’s Doing Business rankings. India still trails in parameters such as Ease of Starting Business, Registering Property, Paying Taxes and Enforcing Contracts. The Economic Survey has numerous case studies:

• For merchandise exports, the logistics process flow for imports is more efficient than that for exports.
• Electronics exports and imports through Bengaluru airport illustrate how Indian logistical processes can be world class.

The turnaround time of ships in India has almost halved to 2.48 days in 2018-19 from 4.67 days in 2010-11. Suggestions for further Ease of Doing Business:

• Close coordination between the Logistics division of the Ministry of Commerce and Industry, the Central Board of Indirect Taxes and Customs, Ministry of Shipping and the different port authorities.
• Individual sectors such as tourism or manufacturing require a more targeted approach that maps out the regulatory and process bottlenecks for each segment.

The sharp rise in India’s ranking underscores the reformist credentials of the Narendra Modi-led National Democratic Alliance government and may help the country attract multinational companies looking for alternative investment destinations to China amid Beijing’s ongoing trade war with the US. Beginning 2020, the World Bank will expand its ease of doing business survey to two more cities—Bengaluru and Kolkata—in addition to Delhi and Mumbai that are currently surveyed. In a change of methodology, the World Bank has decided to have four cities from every country with a population above 100 million. Apart from India, the US and China will have two more cities included in the ranking next year.

In the latest World Bank rankings, India also surpassed Vietnam, which dropped a notch to 70. Vietnam has been a major beneficiary of the US-China trade war, with many companies shifting their base to that country.

India made the process of obtaining a building permit more efficient. Obtaining all permits and authorizations to build a warehouse now costs 4% of the warehouse value, down from 5.7% the previous year. In addition, authorities enhanced building quality control in Delhi by strengthening professional certification requirements. Importing and exporting also became easier for companies with the creation of a single electronic platform for trade stakeholders, upgrades to port infrastructure and improvements to electronic submission of documents