Govt issues steel quality control order for kitchen appliances

New Delhi, June 10: In order to check the sale of defective and sub-standard stainless steel products used for making utensils and various kitchen appliances, the government on Friday issued a quality control order that will help filter imports of the metal.

The steel ministry issued the Stainless Steel (Quality Control) Order, 2016 for products used in making utensils and kitchen appliances.

Prepared in consultation with the Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS), the quality control order seeks to check the sale of defective and sub-standard stainless steel products.

It is applicable on various grades of stainless steel plates, sheets and strips used for utensils as well as for low nickel austenitic stainless steel sheets and strips used in kitchen appliances and utensils.

“No person shall by himself or through any person on his behalf manufacture or store for sale, sell or distribute any stainless steel product specified in the schedule, which do not conform to the specified standards and do not bear standard mark of BIS, on obtaining a certification mark licence from BIS ,” the ministry said.

The government from time to time has been issuing steel quality control orders in a bid to ensure that only quality products are imported into the country.

It has also been taking other counter measures such as imposing minimum import price, anti-dumping and safeguard duties on various steel products to check imports from countries such as China, South Korea and Japan.

Last month, the government imposed a provisional anti-dumping duty for six months on seamless tubes, steel pipes, among others imported from China.