India forms more than 1.68 lakh companies in FY24; highest in Feb

So far, more than 1,68,700 companies have been formed in FY24 with ₹19,774 crore as paid-up capital, compared to over 1,59,500 companies registered in FY23 with a paid-up capital of ₹18,132.16 crore. Paid-up capital is the shares subscribed and paid for, which can be further augmented.

ONGC Green Ltd., PFC Infra Finance IFSC Ltd., IRCTC Payments Ltd., Indbank Global Support Services Ltd., Jamnagar Transmission Ltd. and Bhadla III & Bikaner III Transmission Ltd. are the state-owned companies registered in February, showed official data from the ministry of corporate affairs.

In January, 14,327 companies were registered in the country. Only 2,818 companies were registered in February 2023 when a technological upgrade of the statutory filing portal was underway.

The average paid up capital in the companies so far registered this year is ₹11.72 lakh, indicating that new business registrations are led by small businesses, which form a key segment of the industry.

India also has a large informal sector, with over 60 million unincorporated non-agriculture micro, small and medium enterprises accounting for over 11 million jobs in the country.

At present, two thirds of the 2.64 million companies registered in the country cumulatively, are active. Data separately available from the ministry showed that 2,38,301 incorporations have happened from 1 April 2023 to 21 March 2024 as compared to 1,89,446 incorporations for the same period in previous year. This includes limited liability partnerships (LLPs) as well.

More than a fourth of all companies registered in February are into community, personal and social services, while 16% are into trading and 15% into manufacturing. In agriculture and allied sectors, 937 companies were formed.

At the end of February, over 26,000 companies are in the process of being removed from official registry for not having filed annual returns for two consecutive years. These are companies, which are mostly defunct. Also, 10,377 companies are under liquidation.

In February, 43,121 professionals took registration for becoming directors on the board of companies. Of this, two thirds are males and a third are females. About 44% of new directors registered belongs to age 31-45 years, ministry data showed.

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Published: 29 Mar 2024, 03:04 PM IST