16 more steel products brought under Quality Control order

New Delhi: Sixteen additional steel products have been brought under the ambit of quality control order, a move that will bring around 90 per cent of the steel and steel products consumed in the country under QCO.

Ministry of Steel has issued two Quality Control orders, namely Steel and Steel Products (Quality Control) Order, 2018 and Stainless Steel Products (Quality Control) Order, 2018 as part of its commitment to ensure 100 per cent quality regime in the sector, an official statement said today.

"As a result, 16 more steel products have been brought under the ambit of quality control order," it added.

Prior to this, 34 carbon steel products and 3 stainless steel products were notified by Ministry of Steel, the statement said.

"In effect, these quality control orders now cover 50 carbon steel and 3 stainless steel products, which have direct bearing on human health and are critical to safety & security of infrastructure, housing, engineering application and public at large," the statement said.

By implementing these orders, around 85-90 per cent of steel and steel products consumed in the country will be covered under Quality Control Orders (QCO), it added.

The notified steel items cannot be produced, sold/traded, imported and stocked unless they bear BIS Mark, the statement said.

Also, foreign suppliers willing to supply these items to India have to obtain BIS registration.

"Government of India is concerned about reasonably large production and import of inferior quality of steel getting delivered to important end use segments such as power distribution, human health and safety of infrastructure and construction," the statement said.

The statement noted that the Ministry of Steel has decided to cover Tin Plates -- used in food, food additives, drug and medicines -- under the mandatory quality control regime and the process is being initiated.

The ministry is also considering bringing the remaining steel products under QCO in consultation with stakeholders in phased manner.