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NEWS

BACKGROUND

Since 1991, wide-spread market-oriented economic reforms and liberalisation measures have been undertaken in India to promote competition and ensure efficient utilisation of resources. Consequently, there has been a paradigm shift in the approach to economic management in the country.

These efforts towards ensuring a competitive economy have got a further impetus with the Government of India making ‘competition’ a serious policy issue. This is reflected in the National Common Minimum Programme of the present coalition government.

In spite of the various efforts, there exist distortions in the economic management of the country that impede the realisation of competitive outcomes. A research study recently brought out by CUTS,“Towards a Functional Competition Policy for India” highlights the existence of several anti-competitive practices and outcomes that emanate from policy/practices of business as well as government (central as well as states). Besides there are cases of regulatory failures, at national as well as sub-national level. Some of these distortions are also highlighted in the Mid-term Appraisal of 10th Five Year Plan brought out by the Planning Commission of India. All these factors impede the process of achieving a sustained high economic growth, generating employment opportunities and eradicating poverty.

Economic reform is an evolving process, which seeks to facilitate the market process to achieve desirable outcomes. India is following a policy of market-oriented economic reforms for the past one and a half decade. However, as yet there is no periodic review to assess the functioning of markets and provide relevant inputs to the policy community. Considering the important role played by the market process, there is a need to periodically review the competition and regulation scenario in the country. This review would highlight the various market-related distortions in the economy, and provide relevant inputs to the policy community as well as other stakeholders for taking necessary actions to ensure well-functioning markets.

It is in this context that CUTS has undertaken to bring out a biennial report, christened as “India Competition and Regulation Report” (ICRR).

The first biennial issue of ICRR is scheduled for June 2007