The government on monday approved the continuation of e-governance initiative MCA21, related to compliance of companies with various laws, till July 2021.

An initiative of the Corporate Affairs Ministry, MCA21 is designed to fully automate all processes related to enforcement and compliance of the legal requirements under the Companies Act.

The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs approved continuation of MCA21 project for its second cycle from January, 2013 to July, 2021.

It would be implemented as a non-plan scheme with an outlay of Rs 357.81 crore, including Rs 54.42 crore for independent project management and certification over the eight-and-a-half year period, according to an official release.

The total amount also includes an outlay of Rs 29.84 crore for continuous improvements and upgradation to the electronic service delivery of the Corporate Affairs Ministry.

MCA21 was launched in February 2006.

"The project will improve corporate governance through better scrutiny of company disclosures, better enforcement of corporate laws and paperless working," the release said.

According to the release, the project would benefit all companies and Limited Liability Partnerships registered in the country as well as citizens through its IEPF (Investor Education Protection Fund) sub-portal for investor awareness and disclosures.

"Banks and financial institutions also benefit immensely from MCA21 as it acts as a repository of charge information on company/company's assets. MCA21 project has also benefited various state governments through innovative use of electronic stamps (e-stamp)," it added.

Among others, MCA21 envisages electronic filing of documents, registration of companies and public access to corporate information online through a secure interactive portal.

The Corporate Affairs Ministry would extend e-governance to various related offices such as the Serious Fraud Investigation Office (SFIO) and Company Law Board (CLB) in the second cycle.

"New services like SMS and mobile enabled interfaces will be provided for improved service delivery," the release said.