Government Strengthens Verification Infrastructure through Amendments to the Legal Metrology (GATC) Rules, 2025

Ministry of Consumer Affairs, Food & Public Distribution Government Strengthens Verification Infrastructure through Amendments to the Legal Metrology (GATC) Rules, 2025 Empowering Industry, enhancing Consumer Protection and supporting State Enforcement Empowering verified accuracy through public-private partnership, Shared responsibility, stronger enforcement Verified measurements mean protected consumers

Expanded Scope: 18 Categories of Instruments Now Covered under GATC Rules Accurate measurement, accountable markets

Posted On: 30 OCT 2025 11:41AM by PIB Delhi The Department of Consumer Affairs, Ministry of Consumer Affairs, Food and Public Distribution has notified significant amendments to the Legal Metrology (Government Approved Test Centre) Rules,

2013. These amendments mark a major milestone in expanding India’s verification infrastructure for weights and measures, ensuring transparency, accuracy, and fairness in trade. The revised Rules aim to strengthen consumer protection, promote ease of doing business and align India’s system of verification with international best practices.

The amended Rules significantly broaden the scope of Government Approved Test Centres

(GATCs) to cover 18 categories of weighing and measuring instruments, including water meters, energy meters, gas meters, moisture meters, flow meters, sphygmomanometers, and non-automatic weighing instruments. These instruments are:

(1) Water meter

(2) Sphygmomanometer

(3) Clinical thermometer

(4) Automatic rail weighbridges

(5) Tape measures(6) Non-automatic weighing instruments of Accuracy Class III (upto 150 kg)

(7) Non-automatic weighing instruments of Accuracy Class IIII

(8) Load cell

(9) Beam scale

(10) Counter machine

(11) Weights of all category

(12) Gas meters

(13) Energy meters

(14) Moisture meters

(15) Speed meters for vehicles

(16) Breath analysers

(17) Multi-dimensional measuring instruments

(18) Flow meters Radar equipment Gas Meter Moisture Meter Breath Analyzer The inclusion of new categories such as flow meters, breath analysers, multi-dimensional measuring instruments, and speed guns reflects the Government’s commitment to keeping pace with evolving technologies and industrial needs. These instruments play a vital role in sectors such as healthcare, transport, energy and infrastructure, where precision in measurement directly impacts safety, quality, and consumer confidence. The participation of private laboratories and industries as GATCs alongside government facilities will increase verification capacity, improve accessibility and reduce waiting time for industries.This initiative supports the Government’s vision of Atmanirbhar Bharat by promoting indigenous testing facilities and leveraging public–private partnership to expand the national verification network.

The recognition of Regional Reference Standard Laboratories (RRSLs) and National Test House (NTH) laboratories as deemed GATCs ensures a nationwide network for verification of consumer facing instruments.

Regular and decentralized verification of weighing scales, water meters, energy meters, etc. will minimize the risk of inaccurate measurements and ensure consumers get full value for their money. The amendments act as a force multiplier for State Legal Metrology Departments. With Government Approved Test Centres (GATCs) undertaking verification work, State Legal Metrology Officers can devote more time to inspection, enforcement and addressing consumer grievances.

The Rules also introduce clarity regarding jurisdiction permitting GATCs to verify instruments within districts and across the state and harmonize verification fees through a newly inserted Fifth Schedule. Rules streamline the process for GATC recognition by requiring applications to be submitted to the Joint Secretary, Department of Consumer Affairs in a prescribed format. They also provide clear criteria for inspection, staff qualifications and technical requirements, along with digital payment options for fee submission. This transparent and structured approach will reduce compliance burden, promote faster service delivery and foster greater confidence among industry stakeholders.

Union Minister of Consumer Affairs, Food and Public Distribution, Shri Pralhad Joshi addressing at the National Controller’s Conference on 25th October 2025 at Goa, the stated that – “the amendment to the Legal Metrology (Government Approved Test Centre) Rules is a major step towards modernizing India’s legal metrology ecosystem. It empowers industry participation, ensures accurate measurements for consumers and strengthens the hands of our enforcement officers. With this reform, India is building a transparent, technology-driven and self-reliant system of measurement verification that enhances fairness in trade and protects consumer rights.” Through these reforms, India reinforces its commitment to scientific and transparent metrology systems that are aligned with the recommendations of the International Organization of Legal Metrology

(OIML). The amendments will not only ensure greater accuracy and accountability in measurement based transactions but also enhance India’s credibility in global trade and standards alignment.

As an OIML Certification Authority, India now holds the capability to issue internationally accepted OIML certificates paving the way for domestic manufacturers to obtain globally recognized certification within the country, who earlier had to rely on foreign authorities for the same. This will reduce costs, save time and enhance India’s competitiveness in the global measurement instrument market.

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