Commerce ministry for mandatory standards on products

Identifies 137 products to be brought under regulation

To push product standardisation, the commerce ministry is looking to identify products that endanger the environment, and the safety, security and heath of human beings.

“The department of commerce has prepared a list of such commodities, which can be regularised for product quality,” said a senior official. All ministries are expected to do the same, he added.

India currently does not have a general legislative framework to notify standards for mandatory compliance. The Bureau of Indian Standards uses the BIS Act, 1986 to notify standards. The Act was amended earlier this year to improve regulatory procedures and streamline the certification process.

According to information from the commerce ministry, an inter-ministerial committee has listed 137 products on which mandatory standards will be applied on a priority basis, apart from products in food, electronics and steel categories.

The government also plans to engage with the stakeholders to boost support for the policy even as industry insiders are of the opinion that standards control would affect the cost of production.

According to the official quoted above, products posing threat to human life are not negotiable.

The government is also focusing on improving India’s exports by setting global standards on par with existing benchmarks the world over. Developing countries such as India have faced significant challenges in overcoming the technical barriers to trade. However, experts called for greater attention to end the practice of differential standards – low for domestic market and high for exports.

Generating consumer awareness is crucial, for which a series of conclaves was held in various state capitals and more are on the works.

To this end, the 3rd standards conclave is set to be held later this month by industry body Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) and the Commerce Department with the hope of a closer partnership with the industry on the matter and to raise awareness.

On services standards, the government has identified three sectors — tourism, health care and education — to analyse the scope of standards, said the official cited above. However, since the delivery system for most services involves a large number of stakeholders, slow progress is expected, he added.

The department of commerce is also set to prepare a five-year national standards strategy paper.