Panaji,: In a move to boost ease of doing business and promote transparency and digital governance, the Goa Industrial Development Corporation (Goa-IDC) organized an advanced workshop on compliance with the Online Building Plan Approval System (OBPAS) for architects and engineers. The workshop saw enthusiastic participation from professionals across Goa’s industrial and infrastructure sectors.
Led by Pravimal Abhishek, Managing Director of Goa-IDC, the session focused on providing a practical understanding of OBPAS, addressing procedural queries, and sharing best practices to ensure adherence to the updated digital plan approval standards.
Pravimal Abhishek highlighted Goa-IDC’s commitment to leveraging technology for faster, more transparent, and predictable building plan approvals. He emphasized that such workshops help professionals better understand the system, encourage compliance with design and regulatory standards, and foster a business-friendly environment supportive of industrial growth.
The workshop included detailed presentations and live demonstrations covering OBPAS features, workflow, and benefits as part of Goa’s Ease of Doing Business initiatives. It also highlighted recent governance reforms, such as increasing technical clearance meetings from bi-weekly to weekly and making the approval process transparent and accessible to clients, engineers, and architects.
Significant improvements have been noted since these reforms. Technical clearances nearly doubled, rising from 76 approvals between August and December 2022 to 160 approvals from January to June 2023, reflecting enhanced efficiency and predictability.
Key OBPAS features presented included zero-cost pre-validation of building plans, a fully paperless workflow that links clients with registered professionals, and real-time tracking of applications. Built on a secure DIGIT technology platform, OBPAS ensures reliability and data protection.
Additional advancements showcased were the Pre-Scrutiny Tool (GLDBCR Check) for automatic plan validation, design standard checks during committee reviews, and a One-Cycle Review System to reduce repetitive scrutiny and shorten approval times.
The workshop concluded with participants praising Goa-IDC for creating a practical platform that bridges digital reforms with real-world application. Goa-IDC reaffirmed its dedication to ongoing capacity-building efforts to translate Ease of Doing Business principles into efficient and transparent service delivery across Goa’s industrial zones.
