The authorities will provide you with as many as 58 high quality management orders (QCOs) for merchandise resembling aluminium, copper gadgets and family electrical home equipment within the subsequent six months, in a transfer geared toward containing import of the sub-standard items and increase home trade, a senior authorities official mentioned.
The division for promotion of trade and inside commerce (DPIIT) is working onerous to advertise manufacturing of top of the range merchandise within the nation.
“Since 1987, solely 34 QCOs have been issued. But now we’re developing with 58 QCOs within the subsequent six months. The most important goal is to cease import of sub-standard items. These obligatory norms might be for home and overseas gamers,” Joint Secretary in the DPIIT Sanjiv told PTI.
There will be 315 product standards under these orders. The items, under these orders, cannot be produced, sold/traded, imported and stocked unless they bear the BIS (Bureau of Indian Standards) mark.
“These QCOs will be notified within a year after following due process,” he added.
He mentioned that the transfer would additionally assist in offering international markets for home items.
In order to facilitate easy implementation of those orders, significantly for micro and small industries, provisions for added time intervals to get BIS licences and improve their testing services are being contemplated, he added.
Similarly, exemption to very micro models (funding in plant and equipment as much as Rs 25 lakh) is being contemplated on a case to case foundation.
“With the notification of CCOs, manufacturing, storing and sale of non-BIS licensed merchandise are prohibited as per the BIS Act 2016,” the official said.
The violation of the law can attract a penalty of up to two years of imprisonment or with fine of at least Rs 2 lakh for the first offence which increases to Rs 5 lakh minimum for the second and subsequent offences.
Recently, BIS has confiscated 18,600 non-BIS certified toys during raids on several retailers including Hamleys, Wh Smith, Archies and Kids Zone in malls, airports and markets.
These orders are issued by the department in consonance with the WTO (World Trade Organisation) Agreement on Technical Barriers to Trade (TBT) for industries falling under its domain.
The agreement recognises that no country should be prevented from taking measures necessary to ensure the quality of its exports or for the protection of human, animal or plant life or health, of the environment, or for the prevention of deceptive practices.
As a policy, the standards formulation of BIS has been harmonised as far as possible with the relevant standards as laid down by the International Organisation for Standardisation/International Electrotechnical Commission.
The standard issued for any product is for voluntary compliance unless it is notified by the central government to make it mandatory through issuance of technical regulations primarily through notification of QCOs and compulsory registration order (CRO) of BIS conformity assessment regulations, 2018.
As on March 1 this year, BIS has issued about 22,228 standards, out of which 9,774 are product standards. Till date, only 404 standards have been made mandatory through notification of QCO/CRO.
Saniv said that QCO for toys has changed the face of that sector.
Due to the quality norms for toys, imports of toys have reduced significantly and exports have jumped.
The country’s toy exports have touched Rs 1,017 crore during April-December period this fiscal, according to the government data. In 2021-22, the exports stood at Rs 2,601 crore. During April-December 2013-14, the shipments were at Rs 167 crore.
In 2018-19, toys worth Rs 2,960 crore were imported into India. The overall import of toys in India reduced by 70 per cent to Rs 870 crore in 2021-22.
These orders would assist in selling sale of high quality merchandise by way of the ONDC (open community for digital commerce) protocol, being framed by the DPIIT.
During April-January this fiscal, India’s imports rose to USD 602.2 billion as against USD 494 billion in the same period previous year.
Read all the Latest Business News here
(This story has not been edited by News18 workers and is printed from a syndicated information company feed)
