A high-level committee set up after Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s Independence Day call for next-generation reforms will this week take up industry concerns over certification requirements under Quality Control Orders (QCOs) administered by the Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS). QCOs are government notifications that make it mandatory for manufacturers to secure BIS certification before selling or importing specified products. The committee, headed by former Cabinet Secretary and current NITI Aayog member Rajiv Gauba, will on Saturday review the hurdles industries face in obtaining these approvals and examine bottlenecks in standards and processes that affect productivity and competitiveness. This is one of two high-powered committees the Centre constituted on August 19, bringing together secretaries, technocrats and economists to drive the reform agenda. Its mandate includes improving ease of doing business and ease of living across sectors, while cutting the compliance burden for citizens and enterprises. A similar panel— Task Force on Deregulation and Compliance Reduction headed by Bihar Cadre IAS officer KK Pathak—was formed by Cabinet Secretary T V Somanathan earlier this year. Alongside these two panels, the government has also set up informal Groups of Ministers. One, headed by Home Minister Amit Shah with Ashwini Vaishnaw as convener, has 13 members and will frame legislative and policy reforms for technology and economic sectors, including finance, industry, commerce, infrastructure, logistics, and governance. The other, chaired by Defence Minister Rajnath Singh with Mansukh Mandaviya as convener, is an 18-member grouping focused on reforms in social, welfare and security sectors such as education, healthcare, labour, housing and public health. Announcing these initiatives in his August 15 speech, Modi had said: “Current rules, laws, policies and procedures must be redrafted to suit the 21st century, to fit the global environment, and to align with the vision of making Bharat a developed nation by 2047.” At Saturday’s meeting, the Gauba committee will consider proposals such as digital mechanisms, self-certification models, and third-party inspections to ease compliance. BIS has been asked to present details of grievances and representations received from industry and consumers on QCO-related issues, sources said. Based on the discussions, the panel is expected to suggest ways to simplify and reform QCO frameworks while ensuring that quality and safety are not compromised. In its first meeting on August 25, the committee had decided to prioritise challenges faced by Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs), environmental clearances, and certification bodies such as BIS and the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI). The 10-member panel includes representatives from government departments and industry chambers like CII, FICCI and Assocham. It is expected to submit its first report by the end of this month, to be implemented in the October–December quarter of the current financial year, a source said. The upcoming meeting also comes close on the heels of the GST Council, on Wednesday, clearing changes to the Goods and Services Tax regime. These include a two-slab structure of 5 per cent and 18 per cent, with a demerit rate of 40 per cent for super luxury, sin and demerit goods. It also takes place against the backdrop of tariffs announced by US President Donald Trump over India’s purchase of Russian oil, and a trade deal that has run into an impasse.
