BENGALURU: The Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS) has raided e-commerce giants Amazon and Flipkart warehouses across several cities and seized substandard products including toys, bottles and speakers as these products were found without the mandatory BIS Quality Mark, violating the BIS Act, 2016.
The national standards body in a post on X said, "By seizing these substandard items, BIS ensures that only products meeting safety standards are sold to consumers, thereby protecting them from substandard goods."
The BIS has been carrying out search and seizure operations for a few weeks now. The crackdowns are aimed at curbing the distribution of unsafe and non-certified products through e-commerce platforms. Recently, at an Amazon warehouse in Lucknow, the certification agency seized 215 toys and 24 hand blenders that reportedly lacked mandatory BIS certification.
The government enforces quality control orders (QCOs) to ensure that both imported and domestically manufactured goods meet Indian safety and quality standards.
In case a product falls under a QCO, BIS certification becomes mandatory, and manufacturers must obtain a BIS license before selling their products.
When asked about BIS raids, Amazon spokesperson said, "We require sellers of all products to comply with applicable laws, regulations and Amazon policies. Upon being notified, we take actions including removing non-compliant products, and reach out to sellers for additional information, when appropriate."
The spokesperson added that they are engaged closely with various stakeholders including regulators to provide customers with a great shopping experience.
Flipkart in a statement said: " The platform has several processes to review the listings sellers make on the marketplace, and also conducts regular audits to ensure compliance.”
Gaurav Makhijani, associate partner at Roedl and Partner India, said foreign manufacturers must obtain certification under the Foreign Manufacturer Certification Scheme (FMCS). “Depending on the product category, this certification is typically granted after an inspection of the manufacturing site supplying goods to the Indian market. Foreign suppliers should initiate the certification process early, as it involves visa arrangements for inspections, laboratory tests, and technical reports," he explained.
Last week, the Ministry of Consumer Affairs said during its surveillance activities, BIS identified that several non-certified products are being sold on e-commerce platforms such as Amazon, Flipkart, Meesho, Myntra, BigBasket even though BIS certification has been made mandatory for these products.