India to create new business register by 2025

The statistics ministry in India plans to create a new business register. This register will use data from the Goods and Services Tax Network (GSTN), the ministry of corporate affairs (MCA), and the Udyam portal for small and medium enterprises. This initiative aims to track how many businesses open and close in the country. It will be the first of its kind outside the Economic Census. According to a government source, the ministry is looking into ways to update this register more frequently, such as every three or six months. They aim to launch the register by the end of this year. Currently, information about businesses that open and close is scattered. Recently, the government reported that 35,567 micro, small, and medium enterprises (MSMEs) shut down in 2024-25. The new business register will also help verify data for the upcoming Economic Census, which begins next month. The Economic Census involves collecting information on all businesses in India. It relies on state and district committees to gather this data. The last Economic Census was held in 2013. The seventh census, which started in 2019, was canceled due to a lack of state approvals. The idea of creating this business register was suggested by the thirteenth finance commission.