Prime Minister Narendra Modi has asked the Parliament to pass major economic reforms. These reforms receive limited public focus, but at closer inspection, they provide the impetus to attract foreign investment, regularise outdated laws, and lead to increased economic growth and a better business environment for Indians.
Modi-led BJP came to power in 2014 promising “less government, more governance,” and he is now attempting to seize the opportunity to deliver on that promise, albeit slowly. With global confusion over trade and a contemporaneously dim US-India economic relationship, domestic reforms are the need of the hour to push India ahead.
Washington-based Center for Strategic and International Studies’ (CSIS) ‘India Reforms Scorecard 3.0’ identifies 30 major economic reforms that the government can adopt to open India’s economy and promote growth that can pave the way for a Viksit Bharat by 2047. Some of these recommendations are on the government’s agenda during Parliament’s Winter Session.
1. The Jan Vishwas (Amendment of Provisions) Bill, 2025: India has a myriad of regulatory compliances at the Union and state level, non-adherence to which exposes individuals and businesses to imprisonment and arbitrary fines. This poses a hindrance to economic growth and can be a burden on India’s already overstretched judiciary. GoI passed the Jan Vishwas Act in 2023, rationalising 183 provisions in 42 Union government acts. The Jan Vishwas Bill, 2025, will further strike down and reform more penalties, totaling an estimated 355 provisions – 288 provisions to be decriminalised for business regulations, and 67 provisions proposed to be amended to facilitate “ease of living.”
2. The Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code (Amendment) Bill, 2025: The bill aims to hasten and simplify insolvency cases and strengthen creditor rights. Pending cases that can be resolved through out-of-court restructuring rather than with the National Company Law Tribunal will ensure the resolution process remains timely – but there must be strict enforcement of deadlines, in line with the CSIS Scorecard. Through this bill, the Centre can create a more investor-friendly business environment.
Another important bill not covered by this Scorecard but under consideration includes:
3. The Securities Markets Code Bill, 2025: The bill merges India’s key securities laws - the SEBI Act, Depositories Act, and Securities Contracts (Regulation) Act into one single modern statute to simplify regulation, reduce arbitrary compliance burdens, and strengthen market oversight. It also aims to decriminalise minor offenses, introduce modern and more rational penalties, and improve investor protections. This bill has the potential to not only ease business regulations but also strengthen confidence in India’s markets.
Much more can be done, but the Winter Session offers an opportunity to set India on a de-regulation path that is crucial for India’s economic goals. Reforms are an uneasy pill for a diverse country like India that was founded on principles adhering to high levels of state-control and oversight.
The India Reforms Scorecard 3.0 offers insight into further legislative actions that could really push India ahead:
1. India’s Income Tax Act, 2025, simplified rules and regulations but did not bring in the intensity of reforms that the Direct Tax Code, originally promised by the government, could do. The CSIS Scorecard recommends a Direct Tax Code aimed at harmonising capital gains taxes across asset classes and simplifying the tax deduction at source framework.
2. The Industrial Relations Code, 2020, which was recently notified by the government, gives firms with up to 300 employees flexibility in hiring and firing. Firms may choose to remain below this threshold, fearing government oversight, and therefore giving up opportunities to grow and expand. This number should be increased to 1,000 workers, as per the CSIS Scorecard.
The Modi government is strong and riding a wave of recent wins in Bihar, Haryana, Maharashtra, and Delhi. This has added new life to the government’s agenda and increased its popularity and sense of invincibility. The government must now seize this tremendous opportunity and act in favor of Viksit Bharat. The time for reforms is now.
Aryan D’Rozario is an associate fellow with the Chair on India and Emerging Asia Economics at the Center for Strategic and International Studies in Washington, D.C.
About the India Reforms Scorecard: Through the India Reforms Scorecard 3.0, the CSIS India Chair presents a wish list of thirty reforms that the newly elected government should address. The list has been collated after rigorous literature reviews, surveys, and brainstorming sessions involving scholars, economists, and industry leaders. While such a list can never be definitive, we hope this list helps the public understand the choices that are on the table and track the pace of progress on individual reform items. Earlier editions of the scorecard cover Prime Minister Modi’s second and first terms.
