India has published an Order requiring toys to comply with the latest version of a list of toy safety standards and to bear the Standard Mark. The Order will become effective on September 1, 2020.
On February 26, 2020, India published Toys (Quality Control) Order, 2020 (the Order) under Extraordinary in its Gazette. This relates to the regulation of toys and/or materials for use in play by children under 14 years of age, or other products as notified by the Central Government.
The Order contains several important provisions for toy safety, including:
- Requirement for toys to conform to the latest version of a list of Indian Standards
- Requirement for toys to bear the Standard Mark under a licence from the Bureau as per Scheme-I of Schedule-II of Bureau of Indian Standards (Conformity Assessment) Regulations, 2018.
- Directing the Bureau to be the certifying and enforcement authority
The Order as published indicates IS 9873 (Part 1):2018 for ‘Mechanical and Physical Properties’ and IS 15644:2006 for ‘Electric Toy Safety’. According to the Bureau of Indian Standards, the latest version of these standards is:
Highlights of the list of Indian Standards for toy safety in the Order are summarized in Table 1.
| TOYS (QUALITY CONTROL) ORDER, 2020 MINISTRY OF COMMERCE AND INDUSTRY, FEBRUARY 25, 2020 THE GAZETTE OF INDIA, FEBRUARY 26, 2020 | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Entry | Indian Standards (IS)* | Title | Effective Date |
| 1 | IS 9873 (Part 1): 2019 | Mechanical and Physical Properties | September 1, 2020 |
| 2 | IS 9873 (Part 2): 2017 | Flammability | |
| 3 | IS 9873 (Part 3): 2017 | Migration of Certain Elements | |
| 4 | IS 9873 (Part 4): 2017 | Swings, Slides and Similar Activity Toys for Indoor and Outdoor Family Domestic Use | |
| 5 | IS 9873 (Part 7): 2017 | Finger Paints | |
| 6 | IS 9873 (Part 9): 2017 | Certain Phthalate Esters in Toys and Children’s Products | |
| 7 | IS 15644:2006, reaffirmed year 2016 | Safety of Electric Toys | |
| *The latest version of IS, including its amendments, as notified by the Bureau from time to time, will apply from September 1, 2020 | |||
Table 1
In December 2019, India amended its import policy on toys by replacing ‘imported toys have to be tested by an NABL accredited lab’ with ‘sending randomly selected toy samples from each consignment to an NABL accredited lab for testing to determine customs clearance’.
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