The corporate affairs ministry is planning to have a single registrar of companies (RoC) in Delhi for the registration purpose of all companies in India. According to a senior corporate affairs ministry official, “There is no geographical constraint for the registration purpose of a company anywhere in India as there is no direct interface with the public. Since everything is done electronically, we are planning that there should be just one RoC in Delhi which will do the registration work of all companies in India.”
A source from the ministry said the common problem that is often faced in case of different RoCs is that many companies end up having the same name. With just one RoC for registration purpose, this problem will be solved as name blocking would become easier. The overall registration of the companies across the country at just one place will help in standardising operating procedure and also optimal manpower utilisation.
The registrar of a company has two functions—registry function and regulatory function. The regulatory function involves keeping a check on the companies and making sure that they are not violationg the Companies Act. At present, if a company fails to file its annual returns to the RoC then the latter has the regulatory authority to issue them a notice and file a case against them in the local court. In this case, there is a need for a direct interface with the public and the RoCs of different states will be active for this purpose.
