India’s expanding reliance on quality-control orders by the Bureau of Indian Standards raises concerns over supply chain disruptions, increasing costs, and the challenges faced by small and medium enterprises amidst ongoing certification regulations and policy tensions.
India’s standards regime is under fresh scrutiny as uncertainty grows around certification requirements set by the Bureau of Indian Standards. The immediate pressure point is the expanding use of quality-control orders, or QCOs, which the government has turned to increasingly as a way to curb imports and push self-reliance. A reported assessment by NITI Aayog said the number of QCOs rose from 70 in 2016 to 790 in 2025, with nearly 70% covering raw materials, intermediate goods or capital equipment rather than finished products. That matters because these orders can quickly become binding for whole supply chains, not just for end products.
According to the Bureau of Indian Standards guidance on QCOs, once such an order takes effect, products covered by it cannot be manufactured, imported, sold or handled without the required certification and licence. Tax and trade analyses also note that the system is designed to block substandard and counterfeit goods and to force producers to meet Indian standards, but it also adds testing, conformity assessment and certification costs. For importers and domestic manufacturers alike, that can mean delays, higher landed costs and more paperwork before goods can clear the market.
The Indian Express reported that BIS itself accounted for 84 QCOs covering 343 products between 2016 and 2025, or nearly 45% of the total 187 QCOs it administered in that period. That concentration has fed complaints from micro, small and medium-sized enterprises, which often have the least room to absorb compliance expenses or wait months for approvals. Industry commentary has also warned that the requirement to obtain certification across different ministries can complicate investment planning and, in some cases, act as a non-tariff barrier.
There is also a broader policy tension at work. Supporters of QCOs say they raise product quality, improve safety and protect consumers from inferior imports. Critics say the same rules can choke access to essential inputs, especially when certification timelines stretch for up to six months. Business Standard said the government has begun to relax parts of the regime, but only in a limited way. The result is a system that still looks unsettled: useful as a quality filter in theory, but disruptive enough in practice to affect smaller firms, supply chains and foreign investment.
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