Smartwatches, CCTV cameras come under govt scanner over quality standards

The ministry of electronics and information technology (Meity) has placed smart watches and CCTV cameras under its scanner in a bid to stem the flow of sub-standard and unsafe electronic goods into India.

On 17 August, Meity added 13 electronic items, including smart watches and CCTV cameras, to the Electronics and Information Technology Goods (Requirement for Compulsory Registration) Order, 2012, which means these will now have to meet standards as notified by the government and companies will not be allowed to import or sell any non-compliant product in the country.

The other products—LED flood lights, LED lighting chains, Plasma/LCD/LED television of screen size up to 32 inches, CCTV recorders, USB driven barcode readers, barcode scanners, iris scanners, and optical fingerprint scanners—have been brought under the ambit of Compulsory Registration Order (CRO), a government official confirmed.

The provisions of the 17 August order will be applicable to these devices after February 2018.

In August, the ministry had asked 35 smartphone makers, mostly Chinese, and Alibaba-owned UC Browser to furnish details on data security. The industry, however, sees flaws in this decision. An expert believes that the CRO should focus on safety of products that pose the greatest risk to consumers. This in turn would impact the ease of doing business in India.

CRO is the first regulation in India in the electronics sector. It was notified in 2012 under the Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS) Act. Fifteen electronic items were notified on 3 October 2012, and another 15 were notified on 13 November, 2014. Some products that are already under the ambit of CRO include mobile phones, laptops, notebooks, tablets, printers, electronic clocks, telephone answering machines, video games, wireless keyboards, set top box, and microwave ovens.There are three nodal authorities for implementation of CRO—Meity for registration and monitoring of compliance; BIS for action on non-compliant goods; and customs for ensuring compliance of imported goods to CRO.