Quality standards key to manufacturing push; toy sector turned net exporter after QCOs: Consumer Affairs Secretary Khare

Consumer affairs secretary Nidhi Khare said on Tuesday that the country's expanding use of Quality Control Orders (QCO), which now cover 723 goods, was not protectionism but an upgrade of an economy that plans to lead global supply chains. She indicated the toy sector, which has moved from being a net importer to a net exporter since a 2021 quality order, as proof that the policy works.

“In the modern global economy, competitiveness is no longer determined only by cost or scale, but increasingly by quality, safety, reliability and standards compliance,” she said at an event. Khare said that India was at a transformative moment in its economic journey and manufacturing would play a central role in achieving the vision of Viksit Bharat by 2047.

“QCOs were not merely regulatory measures but catalysts for promoting quality-conscious manufacturing and discouraging substandard products,” Khare said. According to her, the measures help improve consumer safety, facilitate fair trade practices and prevent low-quality imports from entering the domestic market.

The remarks come amid growing debate around India’s expanding use of mandatory quality norms and technical regulations across sectors, which some trading partners have flagged as non-tariff barriers during free trade agreement negotiations.

The argument, however, is landing in untested territory. Washington's Trade Representative, in its latest Foreign Trade Barriers report, named India's QCO regime and Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS) requirements across sectors such as chemicals, electronics, medical devices, batteries, food and textiles as concerns.

Defending the quality control regime, Khare said that technical regulations and standards were increasingly determining global market access, and that manufacturers complying with standards domestically were better positioned to compete internationally.

She also announced that the government had issued notices to around 40 digital companies, covering e-commerce, food delivery, ride-hailing, OTT platforms, and consumer electronics, over practices that trap users in hidden charges or unwanted subscriptions, also known as dark patterns.

Shae said that the Bureau of Indian Standards was playing a critical role in strengthening India’s quality infrastructure through standards development, certification and conformity assessment systems.

She also underlined the need to support micro, small, and medium enterprises (MSMEs) by providing easier access to testing, certification, and technology upgradation to help them integrate into global supply chains and benefit from India’s manufacturing push.