QCO rollbacks gather steam, suspended for 55 steel products

The Ministry of Steel has decided to suspend Quality Control Orders (QCOs) pertaining to 55 steel products to address raw material constraints faced by consumer industries such as automobiles and MSMEs, taking the total number of such orders put in abeyance based on high level reform panel’s recommendation to 76.

- SAKET KUMAR & SHREYA NANDI

The shift 151 carbon steel covered by the Steel and Steel Products QCO 15 more steel goods' standards to be reviewed soon 21 products' QCOs already scrapped by the Ministries of Mines and Chemicals

The panel on non-financial regulatory reforms headed by NITI Aayog member Rajiv Gauba, had proposed the revocation, suspension, and deferment of QCOs for more than 200 products, citing concerns that they had increased compliance burden and disrupted supply chains, and were hurting India’s manufacturing competitiveness. Its report, submitted in October, advised the Centre to scrap 27 QCOs for key products such as plastics, polymers, base metals, footwear, and electronic components.

Over Wednesday and Thursday, the Ministries of Chemicals and Fertilisers, and Mines, had scrapped QCOs pertaining to 14 products containing plastics and synthetic fibres, and seven products such as tin, aluminium, lead, zinc, nickel and copper, respectively.