India’s ranking of 100 in the World Bank’s ease of doing business index is “abysmal”, Supreme Court judge A.K. Sikri said on Friday, calling for an introspection.
“No doubt we have been talking about ease of doing business. Some measures have been taken, which have taken us as far as ranking is concerned, from 130 to 100. But in a country which boasts that after we entered globalisation and we became the second fastest growing economy in the world, ranking at 100 is still quite abysmal and therefore we have to introspect,” Justice Sikri said at an all-India seminar on ‘International Commercial Law’, organised here.
Attorney General K.K. Venugopal, who was also present at the seminar, also said that the ranking of 100 in the ease of doing business was not something to be “very proud of”.
“We were 130 in the ease of doing business till recently. But at least eight separate reforms attracted the attention of the World Bank and under review we have been raised to a position of 100.
“Now this is solely at the first instance because I don’t think can be very proud of being 100. To be attractive, we have a large number of various steps that we have taken,” he said, while also calling for laws which are “just, fair and reasonable”.