In order to boost manufacturing in India, industry body, Confederation of Indian Industries (CII) on Sunday has advocated for comprehensive land reforms. This will help to capitalise on emerging opportunities and march towards the goal of Vikit Bharat by 2047, it said.
Manufacturing leads the secondary sector which also has electricity, gas, water supply & other utility services and construction as constituents. This sector has a share of over 25 per cent in GDP with manufacturing alone has a share of around 17 per cent.
“India has made remarkable progress in several areas of reform, but land remains a domain where foundational changes are overdue in terms of access, cost, and regulatory ease for businesses. As India aims to become a global manufacturing and investment hub, land reforms must form a cornerstone of our economic policy,” the industry chamber said. Further, it emphasised that the global landscape is undergoing seminal transformations, and trade and investment patterns are being reshaped by factors beyond cost.
It has made nine specific suggestions:
- As land governance is mainly state subject, CII recommends formation of a GST like Council to enable coordinated and consensus-based land reforms.
- Another major bottleneck is the multiplicity of authorities involved in land-related processes at the state level. The World Bank’s Doing Business Report 2020 highlights the gravity of the issue. In India, registering property requires 9 procedures, 58 days, and costs 7.8 per cent of the property’s value. In contrast, New Zealand completes this in just 3.5 days at 0.1 per cent cost. These inefficiencies delay projects, increase cost and discourage potential investors. “To overcome this, CII proposes establishing Integrated Land Authorities in each state to act as one-stop agencies overseeing allotments, conversions, dispute resolution, and zoning,” the chamber said.
- CII advocates full digitization of the conversion process, with digitally signed certificates and QR code-enabled third-party verification to ensure transparency and eliminate corruption.
- It favours rationalizing stamp duty to a uniform range of 3 to 5 per cent across states to ensure standardisation while making transactions more affordable.
- It advocates states to move to a conclusive titling system that ensures clear ownership, thus significantly reducing litigation risks and unlocking land for investments.
- It recommends that states publish information on the number, nature, and resolution timelines of land disputes to enable informed decision-making and foster competitive federalism.
- CII suggests States should adopt dynamic zoning plans with a “negative list” approach, permitting all uses except those explicitly restricted. Zoning plans must be updated regularly based on evolving land characteristics and economic needs.
- Environmental sustainability must be integrated into reform efforts. CII suggests that states identify forest areas that can be carefully repurposed for industrial use, specially degraded forests in the vicinity of the industrial corridors, offset by afforestation in other regions.
- The chamber recommends developing cross-border industrial corridors supported by infrastructure like transport, power, water, and digital connectivity, and streamlining land banks to integrate rural as well as underdeveloped areas.
Published on August 10, 2025
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