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On January 16, 2026, the Ministry of Heavy Industries published Order S.O. 239(E) in the Gazette of India, officially rescinding the Machinery and Electrical Equipment Safety (Omnibus Technical Regulation) Order, 2024. The order, which was signed on January 14, 2026, withdraws the regulation with immediate effect. This action nullifies the previously scheduled the mandatory certification requirements for various machinery and electrical equipment that were pending implementation under the Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS) Scheme-X.
Background
The rescinded regulation, known as the Omnibus Technical Regulation (OTR), fell under the scope of BIS Scheme-X. Scheme-X is a mandatory product certification scheme that grants a license or Certificate of Conformity (CoC) to ensure the quality and safety of products manufactured or imported into India. The scheme generally covers two broad categories:
Low-Voltage switchgear and controlgear.
Machinery and Electrical Equipment covered under the OTR.
While the Quality Control Orders (QCOs) for Low-Voltage switchgear and controlgear have already been implemented in phases, the OTR for the second category—Machinery and Electrical Equipment—had faced previous delays. Originally set for implementation on August 28, 2025, the Ministry of Heavy Industries had previously postponed the enforcement date to September 1, 2026, following stakeholder consultations held in April 2025.
Affected Parties
This regulatory update directly impacts manufacturers and importers of machinery and electrical equipment who were preparing for compliance under the OTR. With the withdrawal of the order, the mandatory BIS certification requirement under the OTR for this specific category of machinery is no longer applicable.
Note that this rescission applies specifically to the OTR notification and does not automatically alter the status of other independent Quality Control Orders, such as those already implemented for Low-Voltage switchgear.
