Parliament Question: Safety and regulatory oversight of mobile phones and communication devices

GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF ELECTRONICS AND INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY RAJYA SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 2465 TO BE ANSWERED ON 13.03.2026 SAFETY AND REGULATORY OVERSIGHT OF MOBILE COMMUNICATION DEVICES 2465. SHRI A. A. RAHIM: Will the Minister of ELECTRONICS AND INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY be pleased to state: (a) whether the Ministry has reviewed the safety standards of mobile phones and related communications devices sold and used in India, including any tests conducted for radiation, battery safety, network compatibility and consumer harm; (b) the number of device models tested, the criteria used and the results classified by manufacturer and year for the last three years; (c) whether any hazards, non-compliance or safety risks have been identified, if so, the action taken against manufacturers or importers in such cases; and (d) the steps being taken to strengthen regulatory oversight and consumer grievance redressal mechanisms? ANSWER MINISTER OF STATE FOR ELECTRONICS AND INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY (SHRI JITIN PRASADA) (a) to (d): The government is developing complete ecosystem for electronics manufacturing in the country. Ensuring the safety of finished goods is an important part of it. The government has notified Electronics & Information technology Goods (Requirement of Compulsory Registration Order), 2021 (CRO) under the Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS) Act, 2016 mandating the Indian standards. At present 65 product categories have been notified under the schedule of the Order. The mobile phones and similar Information technology Goods have been notified for compliance of IS 13252(PART 1):2010 / IEC 60950-1: 2005 “Information Technology equipment - safety part 1 general requirements”. In cases the notified products are found to be non-compliant with notified standards, actions are taken as per the provision of BIS Act, 2016. As per the details provided by BIS, 129 registrations have been granted to manufacturers for 490 no of models of mobile phones in the last three years. The manufacturer-wise and model-wise is available at www.crsbis.in.The Government takes appropriate steps to strengthen the regulatory framework governing the safety of mobile phones and related devices to enhance consumer protection mechanisms. Additionally, BIS has established an online grievance redressal mechanism through the BIS Complaints Portal and the BIS CARE mobile application, where consumers can easily register and track their complaints online. ******