Delhi adopts 'Survive, Revive, Thrive' approach for economic recovery

The Delhi government's 12-member committee, which is tasked with the responsibility to suggest ways to boost businesses hit by the coronavirus pandemic, yesterday decided to adopt the 'Survive, Revive, Thrive' approach to chart out the roadmap for economic recovery.

The committee held its first meeting under the chairmanship of Jasmine Shah, Vice-Chairperson of Dialogue and Development Commission of Delhi. It was formed last week based on recommendations of Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal and Lieutenant Governor Anil Baijal.

"At a time when many Indian cities are still oscillating between locking down and unlocking, Delhi's firm focus on economic revival shows the tremendous progress we have made so far. By working together with industry stakeholders, the Delhi government is keen to come out stronger from the economic shock," said Shah.

Identifying and consolidating on sunrise sectors such as tourism, hospitality, entertainment, and knowledge-based industries and providing a thriving atmosphere for start-ups were some of the measures discussed at the meeting.

Based on the deliberations and inputs from various members of the committee, it was decided that the committee will adopt the ‘Survive, Revive, Thrive' approach.

In the immediate short term i.e. next three-six months, the focus will be on ensuring the survival of businesses and various industry sectors by revisiting licensing norms, simplifying Covid-related regulations, and taking measures to revive demand, the committee said in a statement.

In this context, Gyanesh Bharti, Commissioner of South Delhi Municipal Corporation (SDMC) highlighted that it has already initiated the process for the automatic extension of all existing licenses issued by local bodies up to March 31, 2021, without interest or penalty.

Commissioner (Industries) also shared the progress made by the industries department in providing moratorium on lease rent on land issued by DSIIDC as well as a major reduction in the interest rate on penalties.

Several industry members expressed the urgency of undertaking measures to revive demand by taking industry-specific measures, e.g. by permitting outdoor seating and extending hours of operations in restaurants.

It also suggested undertaking a joint effort among stakeholders at the individual market level by setting up control rooms to monitor social distancing and sanitization protocols to instill confidence in consumers regarding the safety of shopping in markets.

Issues regarding the difficulty in accessing credit by new firms, who so far have not accessed credit from banks, were also highlighted.

In the medium term i.e. three years, the committee agreed to focus revival of the business environment by accelerating the pending reforms related to ease of doing business in Delhi..