MARCH 27: The Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS), India’s National Standards Body, has intensified its crackdown on e-commerce firms dealing in substandard and counterfeit products. On March 19, BIS Delhi conducted a search and seizure operation at the warehouses of Amazon Sellers Pvt Ltd, located in the Mohan Cooperative Industrial Area, Delhi. The operation lasted for over 15 hours and resulted in the seizure of more than 3,500 products. These products, which included geysers, food mixers, and other electrical appliances, were either lacking the required ISI mark or were found to be labeled with fake ISI labels. The total estimated value of the seized goods is around Rs. 70 lakhs.
In a separate operation at Instakart Services Pvt Limited, a Flipkart subsidiary located in Trinagar, Delhi, BIS uncovered a stock of sports footwear that was packaged for dispatch without the necessary ISI mark and manufacturing date. Approximately 590 pairs of sports footwear, worth around Rs. 6 lakhs, were seized. This raid was part of BIS’s larger initiative to clamp down on products being sold through online platforms without meeting the required quality standards.
These actions are part of a broader series of raids carried out by BIS in recent months. In the past month alone, similar operations have been conducted across various locations, including Delhi, Gurgaon, Faridabad, Lucknow, and Sriperumbudur. These ongoing operations reflect the Bureau’s commitment to enforcing strict quality control and ensuring consumer safety.
Currently, there are 769 products notified for compulsory certification by various regulators and line ministries of the Government of India. It is illegal to manufacture, import, distribute, sell, hire, lease, store, or exhibit these products for sale without obtaining a valid license or Certificate of Compliance (CoC) from BIS. The BIS Act, 2016, stipulates severe penalties for those found in violation of these regulations. Individuals or companies found contravening the provisions can face imprisonment, a fine, or both, under sub-section (3) of section 29 of the BIS Act.
These raids serve as a warning to e-commerce platforms and sellers, urging them to comply with national quality standards. The BIS has emphasized the importance of maintaining product quality to protect consumer rights and to foster a trustworthy market for all. This ongoing campaign aims to safeguard consumers from substandard goods and ensure that only products meeting the required specifications are available for sale in India.
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