BIS Seizes Shoddy Items In Raids On Amazon, Flipkart Warehouses | Economic system Information
New Delhi: The Bureau of Indian Requirements (BIS) has carried out search and seizure operations at a number of warehouse areas of main e-commerce firms, together with Amazon and Flipkart, in cities resembling Lucknow, Gurugram and Delhi to curb the distribution of non-compliant merchandise.
In a current raid carried out on March 7 at an Amazon warehouse in Lucknow, BIS seized 215 toys and 24 hand blenders, all missing necessary BIS certification. Earlier, final month, an identical operation at an Amazon warehouse in Gurugram resulted within the seizure of 58 aluminium foils, 34 metallic water bottles, 25 toys, 20 hand blenders, 7 PVC cables, 2 meals mixers and 1 speaker – all discovered to be non-certified, based on an official assertion issued on Saturday.
Equally, in a raid at a Flipkart warehouse in Gurugram, operated by Instakart Companies Pvt Ltd, BIS seized 534 stainless-steel bottles (vacuum insulated), 134 toys and 41 audio system that weren’t licensed.
BIS’s investigations into a number of violations on each Amazon and Flipkart traced non-certified merchandise again to Techvision Worldwide Pvt Ltd. Appearing on this lead, BIS carried out raids at two totally different services of Techvision Worldwide in Delhi, uncovering roughly 7,000 electrical water heaters, 4,000 electrical meals mixers, 95 electrical room heaters, and 40 gasoline stoves, with out BIS certification.
Non-certified merchandise seized embody manufacturers like Digismart, Activa, Inalsa, Cello Swift, and Butterfly, amongst others, the assertion mentioned. Following the seizure of fabric, BIS initiates authorized motion towards the entities for violation of norms. BIS has already filed two court docket circumstances towards M/s Techvision Worldwide Pvt Ltd for violations of Sections 17(1) and 17(3) of the BIS Act, 2016. Further circumstances are within the strategy of being filed for different seizure operations.
Beneath Part 17 of the BIS Act, 2016, defaulters face a penalty not lower than Rs 2 lakh, which can prolong as much as ten occasions the worth of the products offered or provided on the market. Moreover, relying on the severity of the violation, offenders may additionally face imprisonment of as much as two years.
BIS is actively conducting market surveillance to make sure that shopper merchandise accessible out there, together with on e-commerce platforms, adjust to relevant security and high quality requirements. As a part of surveillance, BIS purchases numerous shopper merchandise and topics them to rigorous testing to confirm compliance with the prescribed requirements.
The merchandise beneath market surveillance embody generally used shopper items resembling home strain cookers, hand-held blenders, meals mixers, electrical irons, room heaters, PVC cables, gasoline stoves, toys, two-wheeler helmets, switches, sockets, and aluminium foils for meals packaging. Contemplating the potential hazards posed by substandard high quality merchandise, the Central Authorities has made BIS certification necessary for these merchandise within the public curiosity.
Nevertheless, throughout its surveillance actions, BIS has recognized a number of non-certified merchandise being offered on e-commerce platforms resembling Amazon, Flipkart, Meesho, Myntra, and BigBasket despite the fact that BIS certification has been made necessary for these merchandise.
Non-certified merchandise embody these that don’t bear an ISI Mark or an ISI Mark with an invalid license quantity (CM/L quantity). These non-certified merchandise pose important security dangers to shoppers as they haven’t undergone impartial third-party testing to make sure they meet minimal security and efficiency requirements.
These large-scale seizures spotlight the widespread concern of unsafe non-certified merchandise being offered on-line, underscoring the pressing want for e-commerce platforms to train higher due diligence in guaranteeing that solely BIS-certified merchandise are listed on the market, wherever mandated by the Central authorities, the assertion mentioned.
On this regard, BIS has issued notices to all these e-commerce platforms, directing them to make sure that merchandise requiring BIS certification are duly licensed earlier than being made accessible to shoppers. BIS has additionally urged shoppers to make knowledgeable buying selections by utilising the BIS Care app.
This app offers shoppers with essential info on merchandise that require necessary BIS certification and permits them to confirm the authenticity of a product’s BIS certification by checking the ISI Mark and the producer’s license quantity (CM/L). Moreover, shoppers can use the BIS Care app to lodge complaints about merchandise that don’t bear the ISI Mark or report high quality issues relating to BIS-certified merchandise, the assertion added.
