Assam: BIS Raids Guwahati Steel Units, Seizes Rs 87 Lakh Worth of Unlicensed Ingots

Staff Reporter

Guwahati: In a bid to check illegal activities, officials of the Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS), Guwahati Branch Office, on Tuesday conducted a search & seizure operation at the premises of Hanuman Steel and Shiv Alloys Steel, located at Paschim Boragaon, Guwahati.

The team from BIS initiated the action based on specific information received and a subsequent discreet investigation carried out by the Bureau. During the operation, the team found that the establishment was engaged in the manufacture, storing and selling of Cast Billet Ingots without any valid licence or authorisation from BIS.

The BIS team seized a total of 173.5 metric tonnes of ingots during the operation, costing almost Rs. 87 lakh. The production of cast billet ingots is covered under Indian Standards as IS 14650:2023 and is notified for compulsory BIS certification by the Government of India.

Official sources said, "Action is being initiated against the offenders under Section 17(1) of the BIS Act, 2016. The violation is punishable with imprisonment of up to two years or a fine not less than Rs 2,00,000, or both. As per the BIS Act, 2016, no person shall manufacture, import, distribute, sell, hire, lease, store or exhibit for sale any such goods, article, process, system or service under subsection (1) of section 16 of BIS act 2016 without a Standard Mark, except under a valid license."

The Bureau urged citizens to report any instances of misuse of the ISI mark or sale of products without mandatory BIS certification, assuring that the identity of informants will be kept strictly confidential.

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