BIS took action against three water bottlers in Pune who were illegally using the ISI quality mark
4. August 2022Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS) staff took legal action against three water bottling plants in Pune that placed the ISI seal of approval on their products without proper certification. This followed unannounced inspections by BIS of numerous water bottling plants in and around Pune. BIS employees found three companies bottling drinking water without the appropriate license. A large number of 20-liter containers as well as 1-liter and 500-ml bottles, which also bore an illegal ISI seal of approval, were seized.
The head of the BIS office in Pune, Sanjay Kumar, told Hindustan Time that the accused companies are being prosecuted for violating the BIS Act of 2016. Further, samples were seized from the production premises and the companies were shut down. Navindra Gautam, also of BIS Pune, said the license of all three companies had expired and renewal cost the equivalent of $1,250. A sum Gautam said many companies save and instead continue producing without a license. A BIS license for drinking water bottlers is issued only after inspection of the production facility and laboratory tests and health checks of employees. According to Gautam, consuming non-certified drinking water can be dangerous and lead to health problems.
According to BIS staff, illegal water bottlers often operate as criminal networks and on the outskirts of cities where inspections are rare. Another tactic, they say, is illegally affixing the ISI seal of approval to containers or bottles to fool consumers into believing they are of a certain quality. According to BIS, every consumer water bottle must bear the ISI seal of approval and have been certified by BIS. In the Pune city area, there are only 170 BIS-certified water bottlers. The BIS advises the population to pay attention to the quality seal and to avoid illegally bottled drinking water.
A large number of different products require BIS certification in order to be imported into India or placed on the market. Depending on the product, a distinction is made between BIS-ISI or BIS-CRS certification.
Since 2012, the BIS has been gradually expanding the certification catalog and continuously adding additional goods. BIS certification mandatory for many electronic products for industrial and consumer uses. Factory inspections are also required for some products.
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