- Why in news
- On 10 February 2026, the Commerce Ministry told the Lok Sabha that India will be part of the World Bank's third B-READY report due in 2026. It also listed reforms under BRAP, RCB, Jan Vishwas and NSWS.
- What it is
- B-READY (Business Ready) is the World Bank Group's assessment of the business and investment environment in countries. It replaced the Doing Business Report, which was discontinued in 2020. It looks at both regulations and public services across the whole business lifecycle.
- Replaces Doing Business
- The World Bank discontinued the Doing Business Report in 2020 and launched B-READY in 2024.
- Coverage
- B-READY covers 180+ countries over three years and 10 topics, from business entry to insolvency.
- India's last Doing Business rank
- India ranked 63 in the 2019 Doing Business Report.
- India in B-READY
- India is to be part of the third B-READY report, scheduled for release in 2026.
- BRAP
- DPIIT launched the Business Reforms Action Plan in 2014. States/UTs are assessed on it.
- Jan Vishwas Act, 2023
- The Act decriminalises 183 provisions under 42 Acts administered by 19 Ministries/Departments.
Don’t confuse with Doing Business vs B-READY: Doing Business (ended 2020) ranked countries mainly on regulations. B-READY is its successor and, unlike it, also looks at public services and how rules work in practice.
Don’t confuse with BRAP vs RCB: BRAP assesses States/UTs on a reform action plan. RCB (2020) is a drive to reduce burdensome compliances by Centre and States.
Reports and indices: 14 Prelims questions since 2013; they test who publishes a report and what it measures.
Why it matters
- A credible B-READY score can help India attract investment and show reform progress.
- Reforms like single window and decriminalisation cut cost and time for firms.
Problems
- States differ widely in reform delivery, so on-ground experience may lag policy.
- Compliance cuts and decriminalisation must reach local-level rules and inspections.
Way forward
- Move from paper reforms to measured service delivery, using the NSWS dashboard.
- Complete the Jan Vishwas 2025 Bill and harmonise State rules.
Put in your answer
Compliance reduction: Over 47,000 compliances were reduced in five years under the RCB initiative.
National Single Window System: 32 Central Ministries/Departments and 33 States/UTs are integrated with NSWS.
- 2016Prelims Q37Which body declared India's ranking in the Ease of Doing Business Index?
- 2019Prelims Q77Which option is not a sub-index of the World Bank's Ease of Doing Business Index?
UPSC’s own questions that come close to this issue, from our Prelims and Mains banks.
No practice question for this one; the card may still help an answer. Why: B-READY replaced the discontinued Doing Business Report; it covers 10 topics. Reports are 14 of 327 Prelims questions.
Worth revising until Prelims 2027: most news questions come within two years of the event.