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In order to ensure the safety and quality of cables and wires ordinarily used in households, these have been brought under mandatory quality certification. All cables and wires (up to and including 1,100 volts) sold in India have to conform to the quality standards prescribed by the Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS) and should have the licence and the quality mark (ISI) issued by the BIS. Those that are not made as per these standards or do not carry the standard mark cannot be sold at all. So look for the ISI mark given by the BIS on the cable and make sure that it is genuine.
And the order gives the enforcement agencies the right to deform beyond use and sell as scrap, any wires, cables, that do not conform to the standard and are sub-standard or defective. The cables specified for such mandatory certification are PVC-insulated cables and elsastomer-insulated cables for working voltages up to and including 1100 volts While the PVC-insulated cables for working voltages up to and including 1,100 volts should have the number IS 694, the Elastomer or rubber-insulated cables should carry the number IS 9968. While the number is printed on top of the ISI logo, you will find below it, the license number. Before purchasing cables and wires, one should look for the ISI mark and this number. One can also check the list of licencees provided on the BIS website at www.bis.org.in. For any ISI marked product, you can look up the "Buyers guide" on the website and check the names and addresses of the licensee. I must also warn you against the possibility of spurious ISI marking on cables. So look carefully at the label, buy from a reputed shop and always collect the cash receipt and insist on the retailer writing the details of the product on the receipt. If you find any wires in the market without the mandatory ISI mark, or a spurious ISI mark, do complain to the BIS . The organisation also has a reward scheme for such informers. While the BIS takes action against those illegally using its standard mark or misusing it, the designated enforcement agency in the state government —mostly the department of industries — acts against those manufacturing cables and wires without the required license from the BIS. Does the BIS give any guarantee for the cables carrying its licence? If the wire that I buy turns out to be sub-standard, who is accountable? The BIS or the manufacturer? Both are accountable. The quality certification or the ISI mark issued by the BIS is an independent third party validation of the quality of the cable. In other words, the BIS is assuring you that the cable or the wire is in accordance with its quality standards. So if it is not so, then obviously, the BIS is accountable. The manufacturer is also accountable as he is violating the Electrical Wires, Cables, Appliances and Protection Devices and Accessories (Quality control) Order, 2003, which require that his product — the cable — is of the standard specified by the BIS and has its seal of approval, as a pre-condition to sale. So both are accountable As a first step, you can complain to the BIS (you can complain online) and get your complaint resolved. If you have suffered a loss on account of such sub-standard wire, then you need to get compensation too. If the BIS and the manufacturer do not respond favourably, then you have to go to the consumer court.
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I need to change the
internal electrical wiring in my house and would like some information
on how to buy quality wire, so that the wiring remains safe.
The Electrical Wires,
Cables, Appliances and Protection Devices and Accessories (Quality
control) Order, 2003, mandates that no person shall manufacture, store
for sale, distribute or sell cables that do not conform to the
specified standards of the BIS and do not bear the standard mark of
the Bureau.