The Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS), the national standards body of India, took a significant step towards enhancing standardization and conformity assessment by signing Memorandum of Understandings (MoUs) with 35 institutions across the country. These partner institutions include prominent National Institutes of Technology (NITs), government, and private engineering colleges from various states.
The signed MoUs are expected to pave the way for greater collaboration between BIS and the partner institutions in various aspects of standardization and conformity assessment. The key points covered in the MoUs include:
- Participation in Standardization Activities: The partner institutions will be associated with the technical committees of BIS at both the national and international levels, allowing them to actively participate in standardization activities.
- Infrastructure Support for R&D Projects: The institutions will receive infrastructure support for relevant Research and Development (R&D) projects related to standardization.
- Joint Organization of Events: BIS and the partner institutions will jointly organize events focused on standardization and conformity assessment.
- Exchange of Publications: There will be an exchange of publications between BIS and the partner institutions to promote knowledge sharing and dissemination of information.
- Standardization Curricula in Academics: The partner institutions will introduce standardization curricula in their academic programs to foster a culture of standardization among students.
- Center of Excellence: Exploring the establishment of a center of excellence for standardization, testing, and conformity assessment, which will facilitate advanced research and innovation in this domain.
- Sharing Laboratory Facilities: BIS and the partner institutions will share laboratory facilities to enhance the testing and evaluation capabilities.
Pramod Kumar Tiwari, the Director-General of BIS, expressed his belief that these MoUs with esteemed academic institutions will significantly contribute to enriching the standards formulation activities. By collaborating with these institutions, BIS aims to strengthen its efforts towards creating robust standards that benefit industries and, ultimately, ensure consumer protection.
BIS operates as a statutory body under the Ministry of Consumer Affairs, Food, and Public Distribution, Government of India. It plays a crucial role in various schemes like product certification with the ISI mark, management systems certification, hallmarking of gold and silver jewelry/artifacts, and laboratory services, all aimed at safeguarding consumer interests and ensuring product quality. With the new collaborations in place, BIS aims to further strengthen the standardization ecosystem in India and foster continuous improvement in various industries.