Number of defunct companies up 35% this fiscal: FM Arun Jaitley tells parliament

NEW DELHI: The number of defunct companies in the country has risen by 35 per cent to nearly 61,500 in the first three-and-half months of the current financial year, Parliament was informed today.

At the end of March 2015, the number of defunct firms stood at 45,603 and the figure increased to 61,449 till July 16, Minister of Corporate Affairs Arun Jaitley said in a written reply to the Rajya Sabha.

In addition, there were 1.4 lakh companies lying dormant till July 16 as compared to 1.21 lakh at the end March, he added.

The ministry had launched a 'fast track exit mode' for getting these defunct companies de-registered in 2011.

Under the scheme, close to 15,000 companies filed application for striking their names off the register in the past fiscal, higher than 7,761 firms that had applied in the preceding financial year.