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INDIA – TEAMLEASE SERVICES INCREASES STAKE IN AVANTIS AND RENAMES IT TEAMLEASE REGTECH
Staffing Industry Analysts | | Nov. 3, 2021
Rishi Agrawal, Co-founder & Director, TeamLease Regtech, said, “Corporate India faces rising demands for robustness and transparency in governance, risk and compliance. Traditional manual, ad-hoc, paper-based and people dependent compliance fail to scale. Avantis started in 2015 and entered into a strategic and equity partnership with TeamLease Services in 2018; expanding this partnership was logical as policy makers target multiple ease-of-doing business metrics to expand formal job creation.”
TeamLease Services increases stake in Avantis Regtech and renames company to TeamLease Regtech
France Network Times | Rishi Agrawal and Ashok Reddy | Nov. 2, 2021
Commenting on the partnership, Ashok Reddy, Managing Director, TeamLease Services, said, "COVID has accelerated the digitization of employer plumbing by ten years. Simultaneously, policymakers are adopting a new policy thought-world that moves beyond the now discontinued World Bank EODB ranking to an employer perspective. Regtech is important infrastructure for Putting India to Work and in anticipation of the addressable market expanding by 20X, we are excited to expand our partnership with Avantis."
Pay transparency a far cry in India
The New Indian Express | Samiksha Goel | Oct. 17, 2021
Indian industry still goes largely with partial pay as they would like to pay more to deserving candidates or to the new recruiting candidates, says Prashant Singh, Vice President and Business Head-CPO, TeamLease Services. 70% of employees in the country agree that transparency is a must and good for business, according to Teamlease, an HR firm.
Run a business? 26,134 ways to end up in jail
Financial Story | Financial Story | Sept. 30, 2021
Rishi Agrawal, CEO, Avantis Regtech, says there have been improvements in EoDB rankings. According to him, India was in the bottom quartile back in 2014 but is now in the second quartile in 2020, which is the latest ranking. “In absolute terms, significant changes have happened. But is this enough for a country that is looking to get to $10 trillion as its logical destination in this decade? The answer is no,”
Run a business? 26,134 ways to end up in jail
Financial Story | Financial Story | Sept. 30, 2021
Rishi Agrawal, CEO, Avantis Regtech, says there have been improvements in EoDB rankings. According to him, India was in the bottom quartile back in 2014 but is now in the second quartile in 2020, which is the latest ranking. “In absolute terms, significant changes have happened. But is this enough for a country that is looking to get to $10 trillion as its logical destination in this decade? The answer is no,”
Explained: All about how your EPF contributions above Rs 2.5 lakh would be taxed
Money Control | PREETI KULKARNI | Sept. 6, 2021
High-earners whose basic annual salary is over Rs 21 lakh or Rs 1,73,612 a month would be affected. For government employees, this EPF contribution threshold is higher, at Rs 5 lakh
BRIC By Brick, India’s Demographic Dream Unravels
Bloomberg Quint | Shankkar Aiyar | Sept. 2, 2021
Brazil, India, Russia, and China have the potential to alter the global economic order and China would overtake the United States and India would be the third-largest economy by 2050
Claims to be made in case of an employee’s death
Live Mint | Renu Yadav | Aug. 20, 2021
If an employee dies, EPS will be given to the spouse and two children, who must be below 25 to be eligible
Billing if an employee dies
India News Republic | Mustaksubhedar | Aug. 19, 2021
Many have lost their loved ones in covid-19. Such losses can be catastrophic, especially if the deceased is part of a family. Dependents need to deal not only with the loss but also with the paperwork pain required to make various claims in the absence of specific guidance. In this regard, here is a guide to the claims that a statutory heir or dependent must make if the deceased was an employee.
Here is what to do to get your retirement plan back on track
Live Mint | Anagh Pal | Aug. 18, 2021
While younger professionals have time on their hands to recover, for many nearing retirements, these events could have derailed retirement plans.
Govt needs to act to spur private investment
Financial Express | The Financial Express | Aug. 13, 2021
Draft e-commerce rules a good example of a policy that discourages private sector, compliance-need elsewhere also daunting
5 common mistakes that HR leaders make when it comes to labour compliance
ET HR World | Prashant Singh | Aug. 12, 2021
In the future, compliance will continue to become a more important aspect for companies and organizations will expect HR and compliance leaders to be more informed and in control so that they can enable the company to function seamlessly
Contractual, temporary roles account for bulk of jobs generated during April, May
moneycontrol.com | SHREEJA SINGH | Aug. 11, 2021
It’s a worrisome trend since these are contractual jobs with low wages and have no bargaining power. In the long term, it could impact consumption and demand, warns an expert. Companies are increasingly reducing highly paid workforce and deferring their recruitment as well.
8 reforms to end India’s regulatory cholesterol
News 18 | GAUTAM CHIKERMANE AND RISHI AGRAWAL | July 31, 2021
The 1991 reforms changed the business climate of India’s economy. The policy ended License Raj but did not move a needle on Inspector Raj.
How fresh graduates must structure their salaries for more cash in hand
Money Control | PREETI KULKARNI | July 30, 2021
Do not be swayed by a seemingly large gross remuneration package if conveyance reimbursement, variable pay and insurance premium make up a major part of it.
Fat salary but bigger risks: Is this a tech job that nobody wants?
moneycontrol.com | M SARASWATHY & SWATHI MOORTHY | July 6, 2021
Multiple liability risks involved with the job position of the Chief Compliance Officer under the IT Rules 2021 has led to these roles either taking longer to get filled, or staying vacant. Given their onerous responsibilities, that is hardly a surprise
Teamlease reveals that some states in India are moving faster than others in trying to remove archaic laws
Business Insider | BHAKTI MAKWANA | June 29, 2021
Rishi Agrawal, chief executive officer (CEO) of Avantis Regtech – a TeamLease group company explains the compliance struggle for the MSME industry
75% companies find paper-based compliance complex: Survey
https://www.livemint.com/ | Kalpana Pathak | March 31, 2021
"Managing compliance in India is an up-hill task, as the landscape is very complex. We have a universe of 1,536 Acts and 69,233 Compliances that change over 3,000 times a year. Each company not only has to deal with multiple compliance requirements but also numerous deadlines," said Rishi Agrawal, CEO, Avantis Regtech Pvt Ltd
Avantis Regtech, TeamLease’s compliance arm, improves profitability for PCS firms, with the launch of their new automation platform
APN News | APN News Author | March 10, 2021
One of the leading integrated compliance regulatory technology firms, Avantis Regtech, from the house of TeamLease Services has today announced the launch of a new automation platform – AVASEC, for practicing company secretaries (PCS).
Avantis Regtech, TeamLease’s compliance arm, improves profitability for PCS firms, with the launch of their new automation platform
CXO Outlook | CXO Editorial Team | March 10, 2021
Sharing more information about the new product, Mr Rishi Agrawal, CEO and Co-Founder, Avantis Regtech, said, “Currently more than a million companies in India outsource their secretarial compliance to PCS firms. Typically, a PCS manages 50 clients annually, in some large firms it may go up to 500.
How India can improve its EoDB
Financial Express | Rishi Agrawal | Feb. 25, 2021
Increased digitisation efforts in various areas, from inspection to compliance management to regulatory communication, could reap significant dividends
The Labor code may cause white-collar workers and managers to get paid for overtime!
NewsExpressPost | Author | Feb. 24, 2021
In the new labor regulations, professionals who work long hours may need to cheer for one thing, because if the new legislation is fully implemented, the scope of overtime pay will be expanded so that all employees and managers are welcome.
Post Budget Reaction: Startup Sector
The Via | The VIa | Feb. 2, 2021
The Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman presented the Union Budget 2021 on Monday where she made a lot of announcements for various sectors. This was the first budget after the pandemic where everyone had some expectations from the finance minister. Here are the reactions from the Industry experts.
Labour Code may lead to overtime pay for white-collar, managerial employees
Techno Codex | Jason Junior | Dec. 7, 2020
Professionals putting in extra hours at work may have something to cheer for in the new labour codes as the new law, if implemented in its entirety, would widen the purview of overtime pay to include all employees, including managerial staff.
Labour code may lead to overtime pay for managers too
The Economic Times | Nehal Chaliawala, Pavan Burugula | Dec. 7, 2020
Professionals putting in extra hours at work may have something to cheer for in the new labour codes, as the new law, if implemented in its entirety, would widen the purview of overtime pay to include all employees, including managerial staff.
Labour Code may lead to overtime pay for white-collar, managerial employees
Pehal News | Pehal News Team | Dec. 7, 2020
Professionals placing in further hours at work may have one thing to cheer for within the new labour codes as the brand new legislation, if carried out in its entirety, would widen the purview of overtime pay to embrace all employees, together with managerial workers.
Labour Code may lead to overtime pay for white-collar, managerial employees
News Robin | News Robin | Dec. 7, 2020
Pros putting in place further hours at paintings will have one thing to cheer for within the new labour codes as the brand new legislation, if carried out in its entirety, would widen the purview of time beyond regulation pay to incorporate all staff, together with managerial personnel.
Choked by red tape
India Today | Shweta Punj | Dec. 5, 2020
Indian firms are hobbled by endless compliances, complicated laws and overlapping regulations.
New rules to sign up for GST
Digitalrunn | Gireesh Chandra Prasad | Nov. 23, 2020
An overhaul of the goods and services tax (GST) registration process and suspension of the registration of businesses identified as risky are among the proposals of a panel of officials attached to the GST Council.
GST Council Law Committee recommends Aadhaar-like registration for new applicants
The Plunge Daily | Nandika Chand | Nov. 23, 2020
The law committee of the GST Council, after two days of deliberations, has recommended for an Aadhaar-like registration process for new applicants under the GST regime. Its proposals aims to tighten compliance measures and target restrictions on firms identified as risky.
The proposals by the law committee of the GST Council
Indian Revenue | Puja Aithani | Nov. 23, 2020
An overhaul of the goods and services tax (GST) registration process and suspension of the registration of businesses identified as risky are among the proposals of a panel of officials attached to the GST Council.
New rules to sign up for GST
Business2Business | B2B Desk | Nov. 23, 2020
The proposals of the Legal Committee of the GST Board of Directors, made up of central and state officials who advise their ministerial members, aim to toughen compliance procedures and target restrictions on companies that have been identified as risky.
GST Council defines some New rules to GST registration will be linked to biometrics authentication
haqExpress | Nandani | Nov. 23, 2020
The proposals by the law committee of the GST Council, comprising central and state officials who advise its ministerial members, aim to tighten compliance measures and target restrictions on firms identified as risky, without affecting the convenience of doing business generally , said a finance ministry official.
New rules to sign up for GST
U4UVoicee | U4UVoice | Nov. 23, 2020
An overhaul of the goods and services tax (GST) registration process and suspension of the registration of businesses identified as risky are among the proposals of a panel of officials attached to the GST Council.
New rules to sign up for GST
Kashmir Pen | Web Desk | Nov. 23, 2020
An overhaul of the goods and services tax (GST) registration process and suspension of the registration of businesses identified as risky are among the proposals of a panel of officials attached to the GST Council.
New rules to sign up for GST – Mint
India Finance News | Kalpana Warrier | Nov. 23, 2020
An overhaul of the goods and services tax (GST) registration process and suspension of the registration of businesses identified as risky are among the proposals of a panel of officials attached to the GST Council.
New rules to sign up for GST
Clearmytax | Clearmytax.in Editorial Team | Nov. 23, 2020
The proposals by the law committee of the GST Council, comprising central and state officials who advise its ministerial members, aim to tighten compliance measures and target restrictions on firms identified as risky
GST panel proposes overhaul of registration process to check tax evasion
LiveMint | Gireesh Chandra Prasad | Nov. 22, 2020
The recommendations include use of Aadhaar or Aadhaar like biometric identification for new registrations, steps to identify businesses that pose risk of revenue loss to the exchequer
Punjab Inks MoU With The Global Alliance for Mass Entrepreneurship (GAME) In Partnership With Omidyar Network India
Business World | BW Online Bureau | Nov. 3, 2020
In order to ensure the ease of doing business for the MSMEs in Punjab, Government of Punjab has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with The Global Alliance for Mass Entrepreneurship (GAME), supported by Omidyar Network India (ONI).
Punjab govt inks pact with GAME to support MSMEs
Outlook India | PTI | Nov. 3, 2020
The Punjab government has signed an agreement with the Global Alliance for Mass Entrepreneurship (GAME) to improve ''ease of doing business'' for MSMEs in the state under Omidyar Network India''s ''ReSolve Initiative''.
Punjab govt inks settlement with GAME to help MSMEs
News24Nation | Web Desk | Nov. 3, 2020
The Punjab government has news24nationed a concurrence with the Global Alliance for Mass Entrepreneurship (GAME) to improve ‘simplicity of working together’s for MSMEs in the state under Omidyar Network India’s ‘ReSolve Initiative’. The ReSolve Initiative spotlights on giving financing backing to beacon extends that are making answers for enable miniature, little and medium endeavors (MSMEs) just as traveler laborers.
Punjab govt inks pact with GAME to support MSMEs
Economic Times | PTI | Nov. 3, 2020
The Punjab government has signed an agreement with the Global Alliance for Mass Entrepreneurship (GAME) to improve 'ease of doing business' for MSMEs in the state under Omidyar Network India's 'ReSolve Initiative'.
Latest News | Punjab Govt Inks Pact with GAME to Support MSMEs
Latestly | PTI | Nov. 3, 2020
New Delhi, Nov 3 (PTI) The Punjab government has signed an agreement with the Global Alliance for Mass Entrepreneurship (GAME) to improve 'ease of doing business' for MSMEs in the state under Omidyar Network India's 'ReSolve Initiative'.
Punjab govt inks pact with GAME to support MSMEs
Pehal News | Pehal News Team | Nov. 3, 2020
The Punjab authorities has signed an settlement with the Global Alliance for Mass Entrepreneurship (GAME) to enhance ‘ease of doing enterprise’ for MSMEs within the state beneath Omidyar Network India‘s ‘ReSolve Initiative'
Punjab govt inks pact with GAME to support MSMEs
Devdiscourse | PTI | Nov. 3, 2020
The Punjab government has signed an agreement with the Global Alliance for Mass Entrepreneurship (GAME) to improve 'ease of doing business' for MSMEs in the state under Omidyar Network India's 'ReSolve Initiative'.
Punjab inks MOU with game to support msmes, in partnership with Omidyar Network India
5 Dariya News | Web Admin | Nov. 2, 2020
In another significant step towards ensuring ease of doing business by simplification, digitization and decriminalization of compliances, Government of Punjab has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with The Global Alliance for Mass Entrepreneurship (GAME), supported by Omidyar Network India (ONI), an investment firm focused on social impact, under its recently announced ReSolve Initiative.Punjab is home to 2.59 lakh MSMEs that employ a total of 20.29 lakh employees
Centre’s new labour codes leave room for rule-making, interpretation
Business Line | V Narayan | Oct. 6, 2020
Though the labour code’s aims are lofty, it’s silent on matters like determination of minimum wages, eligibility criteria
Labour reforms: Future-ready but devils of detail lie in states
Observer Research Foundation | Gautam Chikermane, Rishi Agrawal | Oct. 3, 2020
Overhaul, not patchwork; good, not perfect; green shoots, not forest. The assimilation of 44 Union labour laws into four codes and 1,458 sections into 480 (a fall of 67 percent or the removal of two out of three sections on average) by Parliament should, if the baton of intent is taken up by state legislatures enacting their rules in the race of growth and prosperity, deliver a business environment more in tune with the future.
Labour reforms: Still a long way to go for India, says Rishi Agrawal, co-founder & CEO, Avantis Regtech
Financial Express | FE Bureau | Sept. 26, 2020
There are different due dates, multiplicity of forms and formats, duplication and redundancy in record-keeping requirements, complex procedures, ambiguous interpretations, leading to a really complex regulatory environment.
New labour laws are pro-business, anti-workers
Business Today | Sonal Khetarpal | Sept. 25, 2020
The three labour codes seen together fail to achieve even reasonable balance between enabling of ease of doing business, and protecting & strengthening labour welfare and their rights
Maharashtra lags behind in "Ease of Doing Business"
Sakal | MCCIA | Sept. 8, 2020
Maharashtra lags behind in "Ease of Doing Business''. Businesses should be inspected online. MCCIA and Avantis RegTech Pvt. Ltd. suggested state government.
Reduce state-level regulatory cholesterol to aid job creation
Live Mint | Manish Sabharwal & Rishi Agrawal | Sept. 7, 2020
The compliance burden imposed by states on enterprises is too thick for them to flourish and generate formal employment.
MSME revival may only be possible from the next fiscal
The Week | Abhinav Singh | Aug. 12, 2020
Despite revival measures by the government that have gradually unlocked the Indian economy following coronavirus-induced lockdowns, the revival of Micro, Small, and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) is unlikely anytime soon, with prospects for recovery only by the next fiscal year.
Zee Business makes clarion call - Kam Caro Compliance!
Zee Business | ZeeBiz WebTeam | Aug. 10, 2020
Doing business in India is not exactly easy - much better than before, but still requires work. Business compliance can actually take a toll on you. The government has been doing its bit to enable Ease of Doing Business in the country and it has gone a long way in simplifying the many processes. However, these still remain a burden on businesses.
India’s small firms are staring into the abyss
Livemint | Goutam Das | July 28, 2020
A ground report reveals that many MSMEs are fighting a grim battle for survival. What can save the day?
If small companies start winding up, it could exacerbate the supply-side issues of corporate India up the value chain. It could also have a big impact on the economy and employment
The real issue: Businesses need to comply with 194 labour laws, spend Rs 4.58 lakh per annum
The Economic Times | Amol Kulkarni & Rishi Agrawal | July 18, 2020
A typical MSME is required to deal with 364 compliances in a year i.e. one compliance a day, with adverse consequences including penalties and imprisonments, in some cases of non-compliances. Of these, 194 are labour related.
India’s ‘Regulatory Cholesterol’ Still Obstructs Ease Of Doing Business
Bloomberg | Quint | BQ Desk | July 12, 2020
India's notorious red tape continues to hamper ease of doing business despite recent gains. Businesses have to deal with a combined 1,536 acts, 69,233 compliances and make almost 7,000 filings in the country, an analysis by TeamLease, a staffing, regulatory and compliance management firm, showed. States with larger economies such as Gujarat and Maharashtra have more than 3,000 compliance requirementes each.
Shed regulatory cholesterol
India Today | Manish Sabharwal & Rishi Agrawal | July 11, 2020
India’s regulatory cholesterol is a direct result of the Avadi Resolution of 1955 that murdered competition, kneecapped capital markets and distrusted entrepreneurs.
To convert Atmanirbhar Bharat into reality, Modi needs to wage a war
Observer Research Foundation | Gautam Chikermane, Rishi Agrawal | July 4, 2020
For Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s 12 May 2020 political slogan of Atmanirbhar Bharat to become a reality, he will have to wage a war. In this war, words and slogans will not do; at best they will be a starting point. This war will challenge an enemy that is deeply and integrally embedded in the political economy of India. It will have to obliterate the vested interests of a corrupt establishment. It will have to destroy carefully-created edifices of an unaccountable, entitled and rent-seeking economic system where the incumbent beneficiaries will fight back.
Rationalisation, decriminalisation, digitsation: The three-pronged view to reduce MSME compliance burden
Financial Express | Rishi Agrawal | June 30, 2020
Ease of Doing Business for MSMEs: The burden of compliance for MSMEs is disproportionately high while their resources are limited. They need to deal with 27 licenses, registrations, permissions and consent orders.
Regulatory Changes in India in the Time of COVID19: Lessons and Recommendations
Observer Research Foundation | Gautam Chikermane, Rishi Agrawal | June 10, 2020
This report tracks the changes to India’s business regulatory framework in the first 40 days of the nationwide lockdown due to the COVID-19 virus. The Union and state governments have been highly proactive in creating spaces for doing business while managing the ongoing health crisis. The governments have attempted to modify the business-related legal infrastructure within the confines imposed through the lockdown.
Work from home: Employee benefits set for overhaul as companies redraft rules
live mint | Kalpana Pathak, Romita Majumdar | May 16, 2020
Mumbai: Companies are taking a relook at employee benefits and employer liabilities as a majority of their staff work from home amid the lockdown. Human resource consultancy firms say companies are increasingly trying to understand how liabilities change for them going forward, as a vast workforce remains at home.
India to benefit from US-China trade war: Experts
The Economic Times | Press Trust of India | May 16, 2020
The ongoing trade war between the US and China will help India tap export opportunities in both the countries in areas such as garments, agriculture, automobile and machinery, according to trade experts.
Labour Reforms: Drug of choice for economic resuscitation during Covid-19
TaxGuru | Rishi Agrawal | May 16, 2020
The huge economic costs of Covid-19 virus are clearly visible. Everything that India does to kill the virus is killing the economy. The Centre and States have done well to protect lives so far. However, it is time to move forward and protect the livelihood as well. Restarting the stalled economy is an unprecedented public policy challenge.
COVID-19: Yogi Adityanath attempts reforms, delivers regulatory chaos in Uttar Pradesh
ORF | Gautam Chikermane, Rishi Agrawal | May 8, 2020
The 8 May 2020 notification by the Uttar Pradesh government suspending all labour laws is unconstitutional and regressive. Hurriedly drafted with little more than a short-term outlook, it will not attract any investment into India’s most populous state. Worse, it could create labour-capital hostility and cart the state back to the 1970s, with constant clashes between trade unions and managements.
COVID19: Shivraj Singh Chouhan initiates Reforms 2.0 in Madhya Pradesh
ORF | Gautam Chikermane, Rishi Agrawal | May 8, 2020
India’s encounters with economic reforms remain steeped in disbelief. Or, shall we say, preconceived notions, anchored in the status quo of the past, prevent us from observing, leave alone celebrating, them. The underreporting of ground-zero reforms unleashed by Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan on 7 May 2020 is a classic case. Perhaps, it is to do with the language Chouhan used — Hindi, and not English. Or, it has been downplayed in the national media because these policies pertain only to the state of Madhya Pradesh. Or, and we believe this could be the biggest reason, the inherent bias against the BJP (that the Party and BJP-governed states) can and will do nothing on economic reforms.
As India readies to work from home, a compliance alert
ORF | Rishi Agrawal | March 19, 2020
Every economic shock leaves a legacy. The deadly coronavirus will be no different. This time it’s a public health emergency that’s shaking up the world economy. In just a few weeks, Coronavirus has changed how we meet and greet each other, how we work and how our children are educated. Offices around the world are empty. This has unwittingly sparked off a giant global experiment in mass remote working. Our work environment is suddenly being reinvented. What demonetisation did to digital payments, corona may end up doing to the future of work. Remote working is an idea whose time has come.
Companies can lay off employees after contract, season is over; bill tabled in Lok Sabha
| Samrat Sharma | Nov. 27, 2019
Rishi Agrawal, CEO and CoFounder of Avantis Regtech and Rituparna Chakraborty, VP, TeamLease Services share their views on the Industrial Relations Bill 2019 tabled in the Lok Sabha on 28th November 2019.
Govt must lead by example and respect the contracts it enters into
| Sumita Kale | Nov. 13, 2019
In its quest to reach the top 25 in EoDB ranking, India may find it quicker to move ahead in other parameters, for contract enforcement, the challenges are deeply rooted.
The gain and the pain of ease of doing business in India
| Sumita Kale | Oct. 28, 2019
In its update on the first 100 days of the new government, the DPIIT announced that the National Ease of Doing Business Policy has been finalised. While specific details are not yet out in the public domain, this policy reportedly puts the onus on government departments to measure the time and cost spent by companies on licences, registrations, renewals and the like and work towards rationalising the burden, simplifying and digitising the compliance process.
Done well, the National Ease of Doing Business Policy can mark a paradigm shift in the way the government views regulation. Easing the compliance burden is the game-changing move that our businesses need to unleash their productivity, the move that we desperately need to realise our goal of a 5 trillion dollar economy, the move that will take India into the top 25 ranks in the world.
India ranks 63 in World Bank's Ease of Doing Business
| | Oct. 23, 2019
Rishi Agrawal, Co-Founder and CEO Avantis Regtech Pvt Ltd
For the third year in a row, India has been one of the top improving economies in the World Bank Ease of Doing Business ranking. This reflects the government's determined push towards reforms. India's rank has improved from 77 last year to 63 this year. India's reforms have stood out in four categories out of 10 - Starting a new business, Dealing with construction permits, trading across borders and resolving insolvency. This is extremely commendable. Further, there is a strong possibility that India breaks into the top 50 next year, the reforms since June 2019 (including the rate cut for corporates, easing GST returns process etc.) will be reflected only in the exercise next year. However, despite this creditable achievement, Indian businesses continue to be plagued by a high compliance burden of over 58,000 compliances, more than 3000 returns and over 2500 changes every year. To give just one instance of the high compliance burden, for a startup working from a home office or shared space, within its first year, it needs to obtain registrations under at least seven regulators and file a minimum of 18 returns to a maximum of 69 returns - this has to be rationalised at the earliest. The government needs to be focused on reforms in the three vector framework of rationalisation, digitisation and simplification, particularly in the categories that continue to stand out with poor performance - starting a new business (Rank 136), registering property (Rank 154) and enforcing contracts (Rank 163).
India’s Ease of Doing Business rank no cheer for MSMEs
| Sumita Kale | Oct. 23, 2019
When it comes to delayed payments, a digital, impersonal, transparent solution should have a better impact than a compliance driven one. In any case, the government should do away with the MSME Form 1, which is the half yearly return with the Registrar of Companies on outstanding payments to micro or small enterprises. Instituted early this year, this form asks all companies, including MSMEs, to give details on outstanding dues to micro and small companies, and reasons for those. This half yearly return has increased the compliance burden on MSMEs and more pertinently, the additional paperwork has had no impact on improving the culture of payments. As a starting point, the MCA can consider mandating this return only for large companies, with turnover more than Rs 250 crore.
“Reducing compliance burden key for safe food”
| Nandita Vijay | Oct. 13, 2019
An interview with Rishi Agrawal, co-founder and CEO, Avantis Regtech on the compliance burden in food processing industry in India.
The steel frame has become a cage. A $10-trillion economy needs deep civil service reform
| Manish Sabharwal | Oct. 8, 2019
Manish Sabharwal highlights the need for civil service reform " Cutting edge economics views development as a game of scrabble where vowels provided by the government enable the private sector to make more words and longer words. The current civil service fails to provide enough vowels; the steel frame has become a cage"
Key Challenges faced by Compliance Officers in India
| Rishi Agrawal | Oct. 1, 2019
Rishi Agrawal explains the key challenges faced by Compliance Officers in India and why a digital compliance management solution is critical for companies.
Trimming The Vexatious Angel Tax: Where It Puts India On Growth Map
| Rishi Agrawal | Sept. 29, 2019
Even as government policy is to encourage startups, the tendency to get bogged down in fine details in compliance hurts the ecosystem. For a startup working from a home office or shared space, within its first year, it needs to obtain registrations under at least seven regulators and file a minimum of 18 returns to a maximum of 69 returns. While framing policy and compliance in India, the government should keep in mind that this segment is particularly sensitive to regulatory uncertainty, lack of clarity and frequent changes. More moves towards ease of doing business will unleash innovation from young entrepreneurs
TeamLease launches compliance aggregator app Rulezbook to simplify filings
| Sonal Khetarpal | Sept. 5, 2019
To simplify the regulatory and statutory universe, human resource company Teamlease has launched an AI-based compliance content aggregator app Rulezbook to help individuals and companies get updates on changes in compliances that are relevant to them in a language that is easy to understand, all in real time. Users can also register on their website www.teamleasecompliance.com to get personalised updates in their inbox to be on top of their game.
The Rulezbook App (available for download from the Google and Apple stores) can be personalised on the basis of an employer, policy maker or individual's interest, geography of operations, sectors and other details. It is available free of cost to all users.
Staffing firm TeamLease launches website to track rules on compliances
| Prachi Verma | Sept. 4, 2019
Teamlease Services has launched a compliance cloud -website called teamleasecompliance.com and an app RulezBook through its regulatory technology (regtech) subsidiary-Avantis. The website and app will help employers or companies in getting access and track rules and filings on compliances.
Teamlease launches web portal to help firms navigate compliance repository
| Somesh Jha | Sept. 3, 2019
TeamLease Services, a human resource firm, launched a web portal www.teamleasecompliance.com through which companies in India can keep track of a comprehensive set of compliance rules and regulatory filings at the state, central and local level. It also launched a mobile application, Rulezbook App, for a similar purpose.
In India, companies are required to take care of 58,726 compliances, involving 1,074 Acts related to labour, finance, taxation, secretarial, commercial and industry specific rules and it involves 3,069 annual filings. Of this, most compliances are related to the labour laws, both at the state and the central level.
“At present, there is no repository of this sort in the country. This is real-time in nature and companies can get regular updates on regulations and compliances delivered to them on e-mail based on their requirements. This is a free of cost service which will enable 'ease of doing business'," Rituparna Chakraborty, co-founder and executive vice-president at Teamlease Services said, while launching the product.
Startup founders cheer withdrawal of Angel Tax; say decision will boost ecosystem
www.forbesindia.com | HARICHANDAN ARAKALI | Aug. 25, 2019
“The pain felt by startups has been heard,” Rishi Agrawal, co-founder and CEO of Avantis Regtech, said in an email to Forbes India. “This will go a long way in easing the initial capital funding challenges for startups,” he said.
Taxing times: Compliance complexity a big challenge for businesses
https://www.financialexpress.com/ | Sumita Kale | Aug. 21, 2019
India’s tax challenge is not the rates per se, it lies in the complexity of compliance. Indian businesses struggle with more than 9,000 compliances and 600+ filings, and there have been more than 600 updates over the past year
Avantis Regtech sees compliance as a critical component in pharma sector to improve its performance
http://www.pharmabiz.com/ | Nandita Vijay | Aug. 19, 2019
Avantis Regtech, a SAAS solution provider, sees that pharma compliance is critical across drug manufacture to marketing. This is because compliance requirements reduces operational, reputational and financial risks.
Regulatory compliance is top on the agenda as Indian firms are looking to spend a higher proportion on capex for upgrading infrastructure for regulatory compliance over the next decade. Our web and mobile platforms, enable a transparent, accountable and efficient risk and compliance management.
Indian businesses are finding it increasingly challenging to cope with the increased regulatory compliance burden. The pharmaceutical sector is particularly hard hit. Our clients in pharma sector have reported significant improvement in the ease with which regulatory compliance is now being met as our web and mobile based platforms, enable a transparent, accountable, efficient real-time compliance management system, said Rishi Agrawal, co-founder and CEO, Avantis RegTech.
Opinion | A good nudge to relieve businesses of regulatory sludge
Live Mint | Sumita Kale | July 12, 2019
Now that India’s policymakers have taken on board Richard Thaler’s principle of nudge, it is time to get them moving faster on another track he has been advocating recently—removing sludge.
It’s time to change the way India does business
www.financialexpress.com | Rishi Agarwal & Sumita Kale | July 12, 2019
In her Budget speech, Nirmala Sitharaman put a greater spotlight on Ease of Doing Business through many measures—simplifying GST process, e-assessments for tax, interchangeable Aadhaar and PAN, etc. The government’s intent to further simplify procedures, reduce red-tape and make the best use of technology was clearly set out. However, there was no reference of a refreshing, revolutionary move that is already on the cards. A draft Cabinet note has reportedly been circulated last month on the National Ease of Doing Business Policy, where, for the first time, we see the government holding the bureaucrats accountable for the compliance requirements they place on businesses.
Why Ease Of Doing Business Is Vital For Indian Startup Ecosystem
Inc42 | Rishi Agarwal | July 3, 2019
The Indian startups have been rising mainly due to increasing aspirations of educated youth. Government initiatives like ‘Make in India’ and ‘Startup India’ are aimed at creating a conducive ecosystem for business growth and are working towards promoting ease of doing business in the country.
The changing nature of jobs
Economic Times | Sumita Kale | June 30, 2019
Most young Indians look for a permanent, preferably government, job, which incidentally also works well for the marriage market. Unfortunately, such jobs are really in short supply and not set to increase in the future. So often we see news like this – “more than 50,000 graduates, 28,000 PGs and 3700 PhDs have applied for 62 vacancies of messengers in the UP Police’s telcom wing, for which minimum eligibility is Class V”! The preference for a government job is due to the respectability it brings, and the assurance of a job for lifetime followed by a pension. One way to ease the stress is by meeting the aspirations of the youth through New Age jobs.
Budget 2019 | Five things the government can do to boost jobs
Moneycontrol | Sumita Kale | June 21, 2019
The new government wants a $5 trillion economy by 2024. For this, the Union Budgets need a strategy to achieve around 8 percent annual growth. A critical component will be creating 80-90 lakh new jobs annually, to accommodate not just additions to our workforce, but also their aspirations.
Digitisation agenda for the Budget
Economic Times | Sumita kale | June 20, 2019
We usually do not think of the government as a leader in any consumer space, so most people are surprised when they hear that India’s biggest e-commerce portal is IRCTC, not Amazon or Flipkart. What’s more interesting however is that internet ticket reservation, which we all take for granted now, began way back in 2002, a visionary move at a time when net access was nothing like it is today.
Opinion | Tackling regulatory cholesterol to reduce our farm dependence
Live Mint | Manish Sabharwal & Sumita Kale | June 3, 2019
Writer C.S. Lewis said, “You can’t go back and change the beginning but you can start where you are and change the ending." Indian farmers are poor because they have too many colleagues and the productivity programmed into these 45% of our workers generating 14% of our gross domestic product (GDP) represents a perpetual condemnation to poverty.
Meeting India’s aspirations through EoDB 3.0
Economic Times | Sumita Kale | May 29, 2019
All said and done, the challenge for any government lies in meeting the aspirations of its people. If we look back at how India’s aspirations have been changing, we find one sharp turning point coming in 1991. Check out http://indiabefore91.in/stories for a collection of memories of the license-permit raj, that will sound unreal now to most Indians. Today’s youth knows and cares little about the headaches of the past. Ready to take on the world, armed with cheap data packs on their mobile phones, it is the aspirations of these Indians that the government has to take on.
Why NYAY won’t end poverty: Promise of income without work represents a panicked pessimism about India and her people
The Times Of India | Manish Sabharwal | April 22, 2019
The 1971 surrender by Lieutenant General AAK Niazi in Bangladesh with 93,000 soldiers is a perennial source of Pakistani shame. But history is kinder to General Niazi’s legacy; he was cut off from his army, his troops were low on rations, the local population was hostile, and he presided over East Pakistan for only two days. In other words, he faced an impossible situation.
Why Nyuntam Aay Yojana won’t end poverty
Economic Times | Manish Sabharwal | April 22, 2019
Poverty is not like cancer where every malignant cell must be removed or will come back. The 1971 surrender by Lieutenant General AAK Niazi in Bangladesh with 93,000 soldiers is a perennial source of Pakistani shame. But history is kinder to General Niazi’s legacy; he was cut off from his army, his troops were low on rations, the local population was hostile, and he presided over East Pakistan for only two days. In other words, he faced an impossible situation.
Creating a place for poetry in business
Business Standard | Manish Sabharwal & Sumita Kale | April 16, 2019
Business Standard Entrepreneurs now require fewer mandays, fewer documents and fewer trees annually to start a business Manish Sabharwal & Sumita Kale Last Updated at April 17, 2019 00:54 IST Follow this columnist https://mybs.in/2X5Iwrt The political adage of campaigning in poetry but governing in prose means election season often involves dangerous populist promises. Populist politicians often suggest Scandinavian social democracies as inspiration but forget that the World Bank’s Ease of...
Back Again From Rules to Deals
The Economic Times | Manish Sabharwal | April 3, 2019
One reason India remains poor is because of its regulatory policy of ‘Show me the person and I will show you the rule’. This has led to the notion that rules in this country are made, tweaked and enforced according to the wealth/power/connection of individual under investigation. Before the 1991 reforms, entrepreneurs spent half their time in Delhi because a licence meant ‘hostages’, not ‘customers’.
View: Congress' Nyuntam Aay Yojana simply doesn’t work
The Economic Times | Manish Sabharwal | March 27, 2019
Poverty eradication needs moving Indians to more productive sectors. By Manish SabharwalCongress, this week, proposed the transfer of Rs 6,000 a month into the bank accounts of 50 million families comprising the poorest of the poor with its Rs 3.6 lakh crore minimum income scheme, Nyuntam Aay Yojana (NYAY), if voted into power.
It’s a wage crisis
Indian Express | Manish Sabharwal | Feb. 14, 2019
The debate around unemployment is unhelpful — since 1947, unemployment has bounced between 3-7 per cent of India’s labour force. But reconciling this mathematical accuracy with our painful poverty — it has bounced between 25-75 per cent of our population since 1947, based on your definition of needs, wants and desires — needs an understanding of the “self-exploitation” theory proposed by the Russian economist Alexander Chayanov in the 1920s. <
Diagnosing the job crisis
Indian Express | Manish Sabharwal | Jan. 18, 2019
What makes farm loan waivers attractive election rhetoric? Why did the new Madhya Pradesh government mention restrictions on inbound out-of-state migration? And will the 10 per cent economically backward reservation be enough when less than 1 per cent of new jobs are government jobs? I make the case that all three interventions are symptoms of one disease — India’s millions of murdered formal MSME employers.
Opinion | Changing the Indian state from bully to ally
Live Mint | Manish Sabharwal & Sandeep Agarwal | Dec. 13, 2018
The next avatar of our EODB programme must aim to decisively shift the Indian state from being an MSME bully to an MSME allyA dictionary suggests that a bully is “someone who frightens someone else” and an ally is “someone who helps and supports someone else”. Do our 63 million micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) view the Indian state as a bully or an ally? <
Ludo vs Snakes & Ladders
Indian Express | Manish Sabharwal | Nov. 28, 2018
Ludo and Snakes & Ladders are both very different games even though both involve rolling a dice. Ludo is more laborious, but you know where you are going, and you will eventually get there. In Snakes & Ladders, the ladders create an illusion of accelerating progress, but the game has more snakes than ladders, the snakes are often longer than ladders, and progress is therefore volatile, patchy and unpredictable. I’d like to make that case that a) success in creating fertile habitats for formal job creation — ease-of-doing business (EODB) — is more like Ludo rather than Snakes & Ladders and the work of decades, b) India’s move from 142 to 77 in EODB rankings over the recent past is a self-fulfilling prophecy that should be celebrated more, and c) our urgent and unfinished agenda in EODB is regulatory rationalisation and civil service reform. Let’s look at each in more detail.
Ease of Show Business
Economic Times | Manish Sabharwal & Rishi Agarwal | Aug. 26, 2018
In 1948, Vallabhai Patel wrote to Jawaharlal Nehru, "The economic malaise the country has been suffering continues because we have been unable to secure the cooperation of Industry. Unfortunately, for India's youth and business, the 1955 Avadi Congress resolution ignored his concern and began and multi-decade discouragement of cooperation with industry that made India a hostile habitat for private Job Creation.
Avantis - Transforming Your Governance, Risk and Compliance Processes
CIO Review | Emmanuel Cristi Das | Oct. 6, 2017
Avantis bring highly flexible, scalable and secure technology which is user-friendly. The company has automation solutions in Compliance, Audit, ICFR and Loan against Shares Management. Avantis solutions help businesses migrate from ad-hoc, people-dependent and manual processes to institutionalized, process-oriented and automated processes.