India in top-10 Ease of doing business performers for 3 years straight

India also figured among the top 10 performers on the list for the third time in a row after it jumped 14 places to the 63rd position in World Bank's ranking on the ease of doing business. India is riding high on the central government's flagship 'Make in India' scheme and other reforms attracting foreign investment. In its 'Doing Business' 2020 report, the World Bank applauded the reform efforts undertaken by the country "given the size of India's economy".

'A success which very few countries have done'

"This is the third year in a row that India makes to top 10 in Doing Business, which is a success very few countries have done over the 20 years of the project, Without exception, the other countries that have done this are very small, population-wise, and homogeneous," Simeon Djankov, Director of Development Economics at the World Bank told PTI in an interview. "India is the first country of its type to achieve that. It has jumped this year by 14 positions," he said. Apart from India, the other countries on this year's 'top 10 performers' list are Saudi Arabia (62), Jordan (75), Togo (97), Bahrain (43), Tajikistan (106), Pakistan (108), Kuwait (83), China (31) and Nigeria (131).

World Bank praises India's commitment to reform

PM Modi's 'Make in India' campaign focused on attracting foreign investment, boosting the private sector manufacturing in particular and enhancing the country's overall competitiveness, the World Bank said in its report. The government turned to the Doing Business indicators to show investors India's commitment to reform and to demonstrate tangible progress. In 2015, the government's goal was to join the 50 top economies on the ease of doing business ranking by 2020.

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Multiple reforms helping India to rise up

The World Bank's rankings come at a time when the Reserve Bank of India (RBI), World Bank, International Monetary Fund (IMF) and various rating agencies have slashed the country's growth forecasts amid a slowdown in the global economy. India was ranked 142nd among 190 nations when Prime Minister Narendra Modi took office in 2014. Four years of reform pushed up India's rank to 100th in World Bank's 'Doing Business' 2018 report. It was 130th in 2017 when it was ranked lower than Iran and Uganda. Last year, the country jumped 23 places to the 77th position on the back of reforms related to insolvency, taxation and other areas.

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(With PTI inputs)