ISI Mark or also known as Indian Standard Institute Mark is a specific mark issued by the Indian Standard Institute or ISI, which is a governmental body established in India that falls under the authorisation of the Bureau of Indian Standards or BIS. As authorised by BIS, ISI Mark is a Product Certification that is provided upon meeting all the necessary requirements set by BIS that the manufacturer can apply for.
All Producers, either from India or abroad need to obtain ISI Certification for Mineral Water Plant provided by BIS. Before initiation of any business in India, a License Number is required in order to be acquired from BIS. After which, the ISI mark is to be printed on it.
To obtain an ISI Certification for Mineral Water Plant, the packaged product has to go through the treatment process to ensure its safe for human consumption prior to the final manufacturing. The basic required treatment processes are Disinfection Process, Filtering Process, UV or Ozone Treatment Process, and Reverse Osmosis, which are then to be packaged in plastic or glass bottles and pouches for human consumption. For “Bottled Mineral Water”, the product has to be completely natural, which must not include any added flavours, Chemicals, Sweeteners, etc. and mandatorily has to be “Sugar Free” and “Calorie Free”.
Registration Procedure of ISI Certification for Mineral Water Plant
All Producers that want to register for an ISI Certification for Mineral Water Plant under the ISI Scheme provided by BIS have to strictly comply with the procedure set by BIS.
There are five primary stages for the grant of ISI Certification for Mineral Water Plant –
- Testing of the Packaged Product
- Filling of the Application
- Inspection of the Packaged Product and Water Plant
- Thorough Investigation of the Application filed by the Applicant
- Grant of License
ISI Mark is essential for the maintenance of the integrity of the Product and ensuring the genuineness of the product being claimed by the Company. The ISI Certification for Mineral Water Plant ensures the product is safe for human consumption and is of good quality. ISI Mark is a well-known, recognised mark in India that is used for the purpose of standard verification of the product quality by consumers.
There are currently two Schemes available for ISI Certification for Mineral Water Plant –
- Voluntary Registration
- Mandatory Registration
For selling any product in India, the ISI Mark is implied mandatory by BIS. For qualifying for ISI Certification for Mineral Water Plant to be granted, all the criteria stated by BIS have to be strictly maintained in accordance with the Bureau of Indian Standards (Conformity Assessment) Regulation, 2018.
The BIS is authorised to conduced regular inspections, including surprise inspections that can be conducted either by collecting samples from the market or by visiting the factory premises. Therefore, the company, after receiving its ISI Certification for Mineral Water Plant, have to make sure that the licensed items are always marinated as per the regulations set in the Bureau of Indian Standards (Conformity Assessment) Regulation, 2018.
Testing of the Packaged Product
For the purpose of issuance of The ISI Certification for Mineral Water Plant, the item should be tested in any BIS Recognised Lab according to the set Indian Standards. The demand for product testing should be created from the Manak Online Entry to any BIS Recognised Lab as per the assigned norm.
The lab conducts each required product testing according to the testing requirements referenced under the Indian Standards and creates the Test Report. Similar reports are transferred by the Lab via the Manak Online Entry, utilising which the Applicant applies the application.
Filling of the Application
When the test reports are transferred by the Lab via the Manak Online Entry, the Applicant can fill the application as per the Test Report being produced. It is required to transfer each Obligatory Document as demanded by the BIS in the particular fields alongside each detail mandated in the Application. When every one of the required documentation and reports is transferred, the Applicant is expected to pay the required Registration Fees to the BIS for final Submission.
The Registration Fees compromises of –
- Application Fees
- Annual License Fees
- Inspection Fees
- Marking Fees
Inspection of the Water Plant and Investigation of the Application
After submission of the application to the BIS, The BIS authorities will check and confirm each Product Test Report and documentation submitted by the Applicant. Likewise, the validity of the submitted Product Test Report is checked alongside the Test Results.
On the off chance that the BIS requires any explanation or extra Product Test Reports, they should be submitted before the date of Inspection. When each of the submitted Product Test Reports and documentation fulfils the requirements as stated by the Investigation Official, the BIS then verifies the production and testing procedure in hard copy only upon conduction of a final on-site investigation.
Grant of License
After the conduction of the final on-site investigation, the Investigation Official presents the Investigation Report to the Certification Official with their remarks for the issuance of the Certificate.
The Certification Official approves the submitted documentation along with the Investigation Report submitted after conduction of the final on-site Investigation. Henceforth, the Final License, i.e., ISI Certification for Mineral Water Plant as a CM/L (Certification of Manufacturing License) number, is granted to the Applicant.
After the grant of ISI Certification for Mineral Water Plant, the producer can involve the ISI logo as a “Mark of Value Affirmation” on its packaged product. The Applicant pays the Marking Fees to the BSI.
For the principal year, the stamping charges are paid ahead of time to the BSI. For successive years, the required Marking Fees is paid in accordance with the manufacturing figures done by the Producer in that specific year. Additionally, the validity of the ISI Certification for Mineral Water Plant is for One Year. The candidate needs to apply for Renewal of the ISI Certification for Mineral Water Plant.
Conclusion
The procedure to obtain an ISI Certification for Mineral Water Plant can take up to four to 5 weeks minimum after submission of the application. The duration for testing of the products for ISI Certification for Mineral Water Plant will vary from product to product.
Any manufacturer or distributor of mineral Water, either from India or abroad needs to obtain ISI Certification for Mineral Water Plant provided by BIS before initiating any business in India, following the Regulations set by BIS under the Bureau of Indian Standards (Conformity Assessment) Regulation, 2018[1] for granting of an ISI Certification for Mineral Water Plant.
