**Executive Summary**
This document is a response to Lok Sabha Unstarred Question No. 1562, answered on February 9, 2026, regarding corporate governance standards. The Ministry of Corporate Affairs clarifies that it has not conducted any study to assess the standards of corporate governance across different states. However, it outlines various measures taken by the Central Government to facilitate Ease of Doing Business, applicable to all States/Union Territories.
**Key Points / Main Content**
* **Studies and Data:**
* No study or data has been carried out by the Ministry to assess the standards of corporate governance of companies registered in different States, including Bihar, compared to the national average.
* No State-specific challenges in implementing the provisions of the Companies Act, 2013, have been reported in the working of the Office of Registrar of Companies, Bihar.
* **Ease of Doing Business (EoDB) Measures:**
* The Central Government has taken various measures to facilitate EoDB, applicable to all States/Union Territories, as per Annexure.
* Regional Director(s) and Registrar of Companies (RoCs) offices coordinate with States and Union Territories to address their needs and requirements.
* Interaction with regulators and State authorities occurs in Regional Economic Intelligence Council (REIC) meetings for information sharing and actions.
* **Annexure Details on Measures to Facilitate EoDB:**
* Decriminalization of 63 offences under the Companies and LLP Acts.
* Conversion of more than 54 forms to Straight Through Process (STP).
* Introduction of e-Form SPICe+ and e-Form FILLiP for various services at one place.
* Enhancement of thresholds for small companies from December 1, 2025.
* Setting up a Centralized Registrar of Companies (CRC) for uniformity in the incorporation process.
* Setting up a Central Scrutiny Centre (CSC) for centralised scrutiny of e-Forms filed under STP.
* Setting up a Central Processing Centre (CPC) for centralised processing of specified non-STP e-forms.
* Setting up an e-Adjudication Portal for adjudication of offences related to the Companies Act.
* Zero fee for incorporation of company with authorized capital up to Rs.15.00 Lakh.
* Introduction of MSME Form I for reporting outstanding payments to Micro and Small enterprises.
* Relaxation in certain compliance under the Companies Act, 2013 for small companies and start-ups
**Impact Analysis**
**Stakeholder: Companies Registered in India**
**Impact:**
The measures taken to facilitate the Ease of Doing Business, decriminalization of offences, and streamlined processes directly impact all companies. Small companies and startups benefit from relaxed compliance requirements and enhanced thresholds.
**Action Required:**
Companies should review and leverage the new procedures, forms, and relaxed regulations to streamline their operations and ensure compliance.
**Stakeholder: States and Union Territories**
**Impact:**
The Central Government's EoDB measures are applicable to all States and Union Territories, requiring them to coordinate with Regional Directors and RoCs to address their specific needs.
**Action Required:**
States and Union Territories should engage in REIC meetings, understand the applicability of the new EoDB measures, and coordinate with the Central Government agencies to address any specific requirements.
**Stakeholder: Micro and Small Enterprises (MSMEs)**
**Impact:**
MSMEs benefit from the introduction of MSME Form I and other relaxations
**Action Required:**
MSMEs should be aware of these changes.
Key Entities Referenced
Companies Act, 2013: Key legislation concerning corporate governance and company regulation, the implementation of which is a subject of the parliamentary question.
Ministry of Corporate Affairs: The primary ministry responsible for corporate governance standards and the implementation of the Companies Act, 2013; also the responding entity to the parliamentary question.
Ease of Doing Business (EoDB): The overarching program the Government uses for promoting a conducive environment for business development, and under which various measures are taken related to the Companies Act.
Registrar of Companies (RoC): The office responsible for registering companies and ensuring compliance with the Companies Act, whose workload is specifically mentioned in the question.
Bihar: Indian state whose corporate governance standards and implementation challenges are specifically compared.
GOVERNMENT OF INDIA
MINISTRY OF CORPORATE AFFAIRS
LOK SABHA
UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 1562
ANSWERED ON MONDAY, 9th FEBRUARY 2026
STANDARD OF CORPORATE GOVERNANCE
†1562. Shri Tariq Anwar:
Will the Minister of CORPORATE AFFAIRS be pleased to state:
(a) whether the Government has carried out any study or data to
assess the standards of corporate governance of companies
registered in different States, particularly Bihar compared with the
national average, if so, the details thereof;
(b) whether the Government has identified State-specific
challenges in implementing the provisions of the Companies Act,
2013, such as workload or resource constraints of Registrar of
Companies (RoC) offices in Bihar and if so, the details of the plan
formulated to address the same; and
(c) whether the Government is carrying out any coordination or
capacity building through different programmes with various State
Governments to ensure uniform implementation of corporate laws
across States especially to promote investment and ease of doing
business and if so, the details thereof?
ANSWER
Minister of State in the Ministry of Corporate Affairs; Minister of State
in the Ministry of Road Transport And Highways:
(SHRI HARSH MALHOTRA)
(a): No such study has been carried out by this Ministry.(b): No State-specific challenges in implementation of the provisions
of the Companies Act, 2013 have been reported. Further there are no
constraints in the working of Office of Registrar of Companies, Bihar.
(c): The Central Government has taken various measures to facilitate
Ease of Doing Business (EoDB) as per Annexure, which are applicable
to all States/Union Territories. The Offices of Regional Director(s)
and Registrar of Companies (RoCs) also coordinate with the States
and Union Territories falling under their respective jurisdiction to
address the needs / requirements of the States/ Union Territories.
Further, they also interact with various regulators and State
authorities in Regional Economic Intelligence Council (REIC)
meetings held at regular intervals for information sharing and actions
by respective authorities.
*******Annexure
In reply to Part (c) of Lok Sabha Unstarred Question No. 1562.
(i) Decriminalization of 63 offences under the Companies and LLP
Acts. While providing relief to corporates, one of the objectives of
decriminalization has also been reduction of litigation burden in
judicial courts and shifting the prosecution cases towards
adjudication, further lower the compliance burden, Section 446B of
the Companies Act, 2013, provides for significantly lesser penalties
for small companies.
(ii) Conversion of more than 54 forms to Straight Through Process
(STP) which earlier required approval of field offices.
(iii) Introducing e-Form SPICe+ along with a linked form called
AGILE PRO-S for providing different services at one place such as
Name Reservation, Incorporation, Allotment of PAN, TAN, DIN, EPFO
Registration, ESIC Registration, GST number, opening of Bank
Account etc. at the time of incorporation of company to start the
business immediately. Similarly, new e-Form FiLLiP (Form for
incorporation of Limited Liability Partnership) was introduced for
providing the same services in a single application.
(iv) With effect from 1st December 2025, the thresholds for small
company have been enhanced. The paid-capital criteria has been
increased from up to Rs. 4 crores to up to Rs. 10 crores and turnover
criteria has been increased from up to Rs. 40 crores to up to Rs. 100
crores. This brings more number of companies under the definition of
small company, which are subject to lesser compliance requirements
in comparison to larger companies.
(v) Setting up of a Centralized Registrar of Companies (CRC) for
incorporation to provide uniformity in the incorporation process.
(vi) Setting up of a Central Scrutiny Centre (CSC) for centralised
scrutiny of e-Forms filed under STP.
(vii)Setting up a Central Processing Centre (CPC) for centralised
processing of specified non-STP e-forms.(viii) Setting up an e-Adjudication Portal for adjudication of offences
related to the Companies Act.
(ix) Zero fee for incorporation of company with authorized capital
up to Rs.15.00 Lakh.
(x) The Government has introduced MSME Form I for reporting
outstanding payments beyond 45 days to Micro and Small enterprises
by companies, promoting prompt payment to MSMEs, and ensuring
transparency in transactions involving small vendors and suppliers.
(xi) Further, small companies and start-ups are provided with
certain common compliance relaxations under the Companies Act,
2013 with the objective of reducing regulatory burden and facilitating
ease of doing business. For both categories, the requirement of
including a cash flow statement as part of the financial statements
has been made optional. Further, in cases where a company does not
have a company secretary, the annual return may be signed by a
director of the company. In addition, flexibility has been granted with
respect to meetings of the Board of Directors, whereby both small
companies and start-ups are permitted to hold two board meetings in
a calendar year, i.e., one meeting in each half of the year, instead of
the general requirement of holding four board meetings annually,
subject to the prescribed minimum gap between such meetings.
*****