Centre Presses Southern States to Expedite Jan Vishwas Reforms in Legal Metrology

Centre Directs Southern States to Implement Reforms Under Legal Metrology Act

The Centre has directed southern states to implement reforms introduced under the Legal Metrology Act, 2009 through the Jan Vishwas (Amendment of Provisions) Act, 2026, at the earliest. The consumer affairs ministry recently reviewed the implementation of these reforms with representatives of Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Kerala, Puducherry, Tamil Nadu, and Telangana governments.

The reforms aim to create a transparent, modern, and balanced regulatory ecosystem that promotes both ease of doing business and consumer protection. To achieve this, the ministry has simplified procedural compliances to support honest businesses and traders while continuing to take strict action against fraud, tampering, and violations affecting consumer interests under the legal metrology framework.

As part of the reforms, the ministry has requested the states to shift from a licensing system to a registration system, which reflects a genuine trust-based and facilitative regulatory system. Registrations will be granted automatically on submission of prescribed documents, without unnecessary delays or prior inspections.

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The ministry has also reviewed the implementation of the newly introduced "improvement notice" mechanism under the Jan Vishwas reforms. Under this provision, first-time procedural violations under specified sections of the Legal Metrology Act will attract an 'Improvement Notice' before any penal action is taken. This reform aims to encourage voluntary compliance, reduce litigation, and improve ease of doing business while protecting consumer interests.

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The ministry has also urged states and Union Territories to expedite amendments to their enforcement rules and Government-Approved Test Centres (GATC) Rules in line with the amended legal metrology framework. Participating states have informed that revised rules are in advanced stages of drafting and approval and are expected to be notified shortly.

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In addition, the ministry has informed that training programmes for legal metrology officers will be organised through the Indian Institute of Legal Metrology (IILM), Ranchi, to strengthen technical capacity and support effective implementation of the reforms. The programmes aim to improve the verification infrastructure, availability of verifiers, and service delivery to industries, traders, and consumers.