Steel makers will now have to produceBureau of Indian Standards (BIS) certified steel items as the Centre has made the certification mandatory from September 12. 

It was stated by BIS' Northern Region Office in a release here today. 

According to BIS new guidelines, all manufacturers, foreign and domestic both, can not manufacture, import, store for sale or distribute steel and steel Products, which do not conform to the standards and which do not bear the standard mark ( ISI Mark) on obtaining certification marks licence, the release said. 

With the mandatory certification in force from September 12, secondary steel makers in Punjab would now have to manufacture ISI certified construction steel like TMT bars, plates and rods. 

Punjab-based steel makers had earlier protested the BIS certification and had demanded from the Union Ministry of Steel not to implement the same. 

Upset over the new mandatory ISI certification, industry opined that new quality control order would hit the small steel makers hard as it would breed corruption and harassment, besides leading to hike in steel rates. 

In Punjab, there are over 300 re-rolling mills spread in Mandi Gobindgarh, Khanna and Ludhiana which are engaged into manufacturing of various kind of iron and steel items for construction and light engineering sector.

Local steel makers have even described the inclusion of steel products in the mandatory list as unwarranted and have accused the big steel producers of pushing behind the implementation of quality control order, saying that it would be highly counterproductive for industrial growth. (PTI)