BUREAU OF INDIAN STANDARDS

BUREAU OF INDIAN STANDARDS

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

BIS CERTIFICATION MUST FOR CEMENT IMPORT ALSO

The Government of India recently announced concessions in duty to facilitate import of cement with a view to check the increase in prices of cement. For reasons of safety of structures and human lives, the cement was brought under mandatory BIS Certification (ISI mark) in 1983 and continues to be so. The Cement (Quality Control) Order, 2003 prohibits manufacture, storage for sale, sale and distribution of cement without it conforming to specified Indian Standards and without bearing the ISI mark. The Quality Control Order equally applies to cement whether domestically manufactured or imported. The Directorate General of Foreign Trade has issued notifications No.44 (RE-2000) dated 24th November, 2000 and No.29/(RE-2004) dated 28th January, 2004 (For details, please see DGFT website : http://dgft.delhi.nic.in/) making compliance to mandatory Indian Quality Standards mandatory for import of items under Mandatory BIS Certification including cement.

The Bureau of Indian Standards is operating a Foreign Manufacturer Certification Scheme under which licenses are granted to foreign manufacturers if they possess the requisite manufacturing and testing infrastructure and capability to manufacture the product to relevant Indian Standards. For this purpose, on receipt of application from the foreign manufacturer, a visit is paid to his premises, sample is drawn and tested in BIS approved laboratory and grant of licence is considered if the sample passes and all other requirements are met. Also the foreign manufacturer is either required to have an office in India with due permission of Reserve Bank of India or nominate an Indian representative who shall be liable for compliance to the BIS Act, 1986.

As on date, BIS has already granted 11 licences to foreign manufacturers for use of ISI mark on various type of cements to manufacturers in Bangladesh, Bhutan and UAE. In case of fresh applications, if the applicant has complete manufacturing and testing facilities and sample passes in the first go, it would be possible for BIS to grant the licence in 2 - 3 months time. (For further details, log on BIS website : www.bis.org.in)

Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS) has granted first licence for Black Tea in the country. M/s Kanan Devan Hill Produce Company Pvt Ltd, Munnar in Kerala, a prominent producer of Tea in the country has been granted the BIS Certification Licence to use the Standard Mark (the popular ISI Mark) on Black Tea being produced by them in their factory at Munnar.

IS 3633:2003 (Specification for Black Tea). This Indian Standard which specifies the quality requirements of Black Tea, interalia includes tea testing, chemical requirements, limits on pesticide residues and heavy metals.

It has been the effort of BIS over the years to bring in products used by the common consumer under its certification so that the common consumer is able to select quality products and ensure value for money. The certification of Black Tea is another effort towards this objective.