Finance ministry to seek advice on Companies Act

Kolkata: The finance ministry is likely to seek advice from Indian companies to make changes to the new Companies Act adopted in 2013 in a bid to make it more acceptable, finance minister Arun Jaitley said on Sunday.

Implementing the changes made in the 2013 Act has been tough and the finance ministry is receiving “innumerable” requests to review some of its provisions, he added.

“We now have a new Companies Act and only when it is unfolding that we are all realizing where the shoe pinches,” Jaitley said, adding that the ministry has been receiving “innumerable number of requests to look into some of these provisions.

” Indicating that the government was likely to be open to some of the suggestions from the corporate sector, Jaitley said that the government needed to associate the “best minds and talents” from the companies to formulate a more acceptable legislation.

“Obviously, we can’t have a legislation which dissuades from associating (the suggestions from the companies),” Jaitley said.

Indian companies should also be ready to grab the opportunities from an improving economy, he said.

“Slowly the Indian economy is coming of age after having met a setback over the last two-three years and there are going to be many opportunities for the corporate sector of associations, joint ventures and investments. The challenge will be in taking control of these opportunities by earning credibility and adopting international best practices of governance,” Jaitley said.