With harmonisation of Indian standards with international standards such as ISO (International Organisation for Standardisation) and IEC (International Electrotechnical Commission), it has become convenient for Indian manufacturers to export their goods to international markets, an official said on Tuesday.

“In fact, in many areas, India is leading in international markets,” Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS) Director General Pramod Kumar Tiwari said at a press conference here.

To a query on key developments and results of efforts toward harmonisation of Indian standards, he said: “It is crucial in many areas of trade that international standards are followed, for example, containers are used to transport good across the world. A huge number of containers are being used by Indian entities also, but containers are not being manufactured in India.

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“Moreover, containers, as they move across countries, need to meet certain international standards as they can be checked or tested anywhere in the world. BIS has formulated standards in this area and licenses have also been granted and we hope we will soon have containers manufactured indigenously and meeting international standards.”

On the question of impact of harmonised standards on other industries, Tiwari said: “Everyone knows the success story of Indian toys industry. From January 1, 2021 BIS certification was made compulsory for toys and it has very positive impact on the industry. Further, BIS certification is also made mandatory for mobile phones, helmets etc. and these are products being used by all, therefore, it is critical that these products are standardised for consumer safety.”

On the participation of India in international activity on standards development, he said that India is aggressively moving forward in the area of developing standards for a safe world.