With reference to the Approved List of model and manufacturers (ALMM) of solar PV module order 2019 and all subsequent orders, it is conveyed to all stakeholders that the above order is kept in abeyance for FY 2023-24. The project started by 31st March 2024 will need not procure solar PV modules from ALMM now.

Notification dated 10th March 2023 by Ministry of New and Renewable Energy (MNRE) can be accessed from here.

BIS Special on ‘World Consumer Rights Day’

World consumer rights day is celebrated throughout on 15th March to raise awareness about consumer rights and needs. This year, the theme for World Consumer Rights Day 2023 was ‘Empowering Consumers Through Clean Energy Transitions.’

On the eve of World Consumer Rights Day 2023, Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS) had launched ‘Learning Science via Standards‘ series- an initiative that enables students to learn science through standards. The series comprises a range of lesson plans that are specially designed with a focus on products commonly used in day-to-day life. Lesson plans will be soon available on the BIS website.

TEC-MTCTE

Non-Applicability of test Parameters Pertaining to Certain Product Categories

TEC have declared the non-applicability of certain parameters listed below under different product categories.

The notification can be accessed here. 

The notification may be uploaded on the MTCTE portal against the above-mentioned test parameters.

Amendment in the MTCTE Procedure Document (Version 2.1)

TEC have recently made amendment in the MTCTE procedure document (version 2.1) against the “Schedule of administrative and evaluation fees section” of the Annexure-C. It states that the

“administrative and test report evaluation fees for the applications submitted by the Govt R&D research institutes such as CDOT, CDAC etc.  for the certification of their products has been waived for the time period of 5 years, ending on 31st March 2028.”

The notification can be accessed from here.

WPC

Interlinking ‘Saral Sanchar’ with NSWS Portal

Saral Sanchar Portal which is used to seek approvals for applicable wireless regulations in India is linked with the National Single Window System (NSWS). All the applicants registered under Saral Sanchar portal will now have to interlink their active Saral Sanchar portal with the new NSWS portal.

The NSWS) portal cater to various clearances for investors at Centre and State level and was launched by Hon’ble Commerce and Industry Minister on 22nd September 2021. As on date, NSWS portal facilitates guidance related to approvals from 32 Central Departments and 32 States and hosts applications for approval from 28 central departments and 20 state governments.

The NSWS portal can be accessed here: https://www.nsws.gov.in/

Important points to be considered while linking the Saral Sanchar portal with NSWS:  

1. First, the applicant must register with the Saral Sanchar Portal and obtain user credentials. In case the credentials are already in place, this step can be skipped.
2. After logging into the Saral Sancher portal, the applicant will be re-directed to the NSWS website to link the accounts.
3. Once done, the organization will be able to access all of the features and benefits of the NSWS Portal, and applications for wireless approvals will be routed to Saral Sanchar via NSWS only.

Apart from this, work related to onboarding other existing compliances like BIS (ISI, CRS), TEC, etc. into NSWS is in process. As per the knowledge session organised by invest India on 22nd March 2023, BIS-CRS, and BIS-ISI approval may be migrated to NSWS in a few months’ time.

In the longer run, NSWS portal will be helpful to eliminate overlapped compliance requirements for the same goods/services by different regulators. DPIIT is regularly interacting with industry associations and stakeholders to understand the challenges with the new system and integration of other compliances in NSWS.

BEE- Standards and Labelling (S&L) Scheme

Last Opportunity- Production Data Upload (2017-2022)

Bureau of Energy Efficiency (BEE) announced the final opportunity for all the registered manufacturers/permittees to pay the labeling fee for the models registered in FY 2017-2022 before 31st March 2023.

This will be the last opportunity for all manufacturers/permittees to submit PDU for all BEE-registered models and the following points should be considered before starting with this process:

1. All details (Production data and Labeling fees) needed to be submitted by 31st March 2023.
2. The manufacturer/permittee has to submit labeling fees with a 10% penalty p.a. through NEFT/RTGS.

After the due date, BEE will close the link to submit the details and suspend the portal & labeling certificate of the permittees that have failed to submit the production data. The complete notification can be accessed from the below links:

Click here for alert for the submission of production data and labeling fees for the FY before 2017 – 2022  

Click here for alert for the submission of production data and labeling fees for the FY 2017 – 2022  

BIS-ISI

DPIIT “Zero- Defect- Zero Effect” Policy

The Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT) is currently working on creating Quality Control Orders (QCOs) for various products in line with the Prime Minister’s vision of “Zero Defect- Zero Effect” manufacturing. These QCOs are being formulated in accordance with the WTO Agreement on Technical Barriers to Trade (TBT) for industries under the DPIIT’s jurisdiction. The DPIIT is working with the Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS) and other relevant stakeholders to identify products that require QCOs, with the aim of issuing approximately 50 QCOs by the second quarter of FY 2023-24. Right now, the major industries impacted from this QCO is Light Engineering Industry and Cement Industry.

Stakeholder Consultation on Draft QCO for Communication Cable

DPIIT has issued a QCO on communication cables (as per IS 14493 (Part 5): 2018/ IEC 61156-5: 2012), Import of this type of cables shot upto 246 million Dollars in FY 2021-2022. The initiative is supported byDepartment of Consumer Affairs, Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology, National Accreditation Board For Testing and Calibration Laboratories (#NABL), National Accreditation Board for Certification Bodies (NABCB), Department of Telecommunications ( DOT ), Indian Electrical & Electronics Manufacturers’ Association (IEEMA), Ministry of Steel – India, Confederation of Indian Industry, FICCI etc.

Once the draft QCO will be finalized with implementation date, it will need Standard Mark as per Scheme-I of Schedule-II (ISI mark) of the Bureau of Indian Standards (Conformity Assessment) Regulations, 2018.

As on date no lab accredited for this standard, but Product manual is already available for this standard by BIS. NABL will sensitize labs to get accreditation by the time QCO will be implemented.

DPIT requested final comments from manufacturer’s association like IEEMA, CII, FICCI within few days so that points from industry can be considered on this QCO.

Waste Management

Final Draft for Average End-of-Life of 85 Electrical & Electronic Equipment (EEE) Products Shared by CPCB.

Referring to the introduction of 85 new products under the E-waste Management Rules, 2022, Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) has shared with member associations a finalized draft for the average End-of-life of the new products as per the attached document.

Post-discussion on the draft, final comments will be released by the CPCB.

Battery Waste Portal is Now Launched!

Referring to the Battery waste Rules, released on 22nd August 2022, CPCB gave a buffer period of 6 months for the portal to launch, which as of date, 22nd March 2023, is live and operational. All the temporary and old filings done through the offline mode are to be migrated on to the portal. A detailed SOP for filing the application online is also released by CPCB.

Telecom Regulatory Compliance

New Telemarketing Requirement on Digital Consent Acquisition

Unsolicited Commercial Communications (UCC) are communications made to subscribers without their knowledge or willingness via voice calls or SMS. Apart from being inconvenient, such communications also have an impact on people’s privacy.

To regulate Unsolicited Commercial Communications (UCC), the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India(TRAI) issued new regulations called Telecom Commercial Communications Customer Preference Regulations (TCCCPR- 2018). Telemarketers operating in India are directed to abide by the telemarketing guidelines ‘TCCCPR-2018’. They must be registered on the DLT (Distributed Ledger Technology) platform of an Indian telecom service provider (i.e.: airtel, Jio, Vodafone Idea Limited, etc.). After creating the account, the applicant company must register message templates, headers, and the customer’s consent before reaching out to the customers.

This is an evolving regulation and with the increase in unsolicited commercial communication across the country and the rise in the number of customer complaints, TRAI has made the regulations stricter for Telemarketers.

Recently, to avoid spam messages/calls without customer consent, TRAI has directed TSPs to launch an authorization system known as the “Digital Consent Acquisition (DCA)” platform where telemarketers can register customer/consumer consent. This will help telemarketers reach out to customers for services while maintaining customer consent and creating transparency between both parties. Majorly, entities providing/engaged in the service explicit and promotional SMS and calls will be required to capture customer consent via the DCA platform.

In addition, TRAI has also directed that Telemarketers are not allowed to use 10-digit numbers/mobile numbers for promotional calling operations. If any violation is found, authorities will charge penalties accordingly.