The 'Weights and Measures' regulations in any society form the basis of every commercial transaction, that is, production, trade and commerce activities. They are needed to ensure that products of correct as well as exact weights and measures are being provided to and used by consumers worldwide. In India, the nodal authority for regulating provisions of weights and measures is the Weights and Measures Unit, under the Department of Consumer Affairs, Ministry of Consumer Affairs, Food and Public Distribution. The unit is involved in implementing the Acts and Rules relating to Weights and Measures. These are: Standards of Weights and Measures Act, 1976; Standards of Weights and Measures (Enforcement) Act 1985; Standards of Weights and Measures (General) Rules 1987; and Standards of Weights and Measures (Packaged commodities) Rules, 1977.

The Acts, namely, Standards of Weights and Measures Act, 1976 and the Standards of Weights and Measures (Enforcement) Act 1985, are mainly focused on ensuring that all weights or measures used for trade or commerce, for industrial production or for protection of human health and safety are accurate and reliable so that users are guaranteed of their performance and quality as well as the consumer gets the right quantity which he pays for. However, to make these laws more transparent and simple, the Government proposes to amend the two Acts and accordingly enact a comprehensive unified legislation, combining the features of two existing Acts under consideration:-

• Standards of Weights and Measures Act, 1976
  
  
This Act was enacted to establish standards of weights and measures, to regulate inter-State trade or commerce in weights, measures and other goods which are sold or distributed by weight, measure or number, to provide for matters connected therewith or incidental thereto. Under the Act, weight and measures also include 'weighing or measuring instrument' which means "any object, instrument, apparatus or device, or any combination thereof, which is, or is intended to be, used, exclusively or additionally, for the purpose of making any weighment or measurement, and includes any appliance, accessory or part associated with any such object, instrument, apparatus or device".

The main features of this Act are:

• Every unit of weights or measures shall be based on the units of the metric system, which is the international system of units as recommended by the General Conference on Weights and Measures, and such additional units as may be recommended by the International Organisation of Legal Metrology. For example, the base unit of length to be the metre; mass - kilogram; time - second; electric current - ampere; thermodynamic temperature - kelvin; luminous intensity - candela; amount of substance - mole; and of numeration - unit of the international form of Indian numerals.
• The Act prohibits the use of any non-standard weight or measure or numeral. Thus, use of stones, bricks, copies, or weights made of non-standard material is strictly prohibited.
• The Central Government shall, in relation to any weight or measure, prescribe the physical characteristics, configuration, constructional details, materials, equipment, performance, tolerances, methods or procedures of tests in accordance with the recommendations made by the International Organisation of Legal Metrology.
• When commodities are sold or distributed in packaged form in the course of Inter-State trade or commerce, it is essential that every package bears a definite, plain and conspicuous declaration thereon showing the identity of the commodity in the package; the net quantity, in terms of the standard unit of weight or measure, or the commodity in the package; where the commodity is packaged or sold by number, the accurate number of the commodity contained in the package; the Unit sale price of the commodity as well as the sale price of that particular package of that commodity. The name and address of the manufacturer as well as of the packer or distributor should also be mentioned on the package.
• The Act states that no person shall sell, distribute or deliver for sale a package containing a commodity which filled less than the prescribed capacity of such package, except where it is proved by such person that the package was so filled with a view of (i) giving protection to the contents of such package; or (ii) meeting the requirements of machines used for enclosing the contents of such package.
• Where any weight or measure, sent from a transferor State (the State from which any weight or measure made or manufactured therein, or kept therein for sale or use, is sent to, or delivered in any other State) for delivery, sale or use in a transferee State (the State in which any weight or measure is delivered or received for sale or use therein from any other State), is such that (i) it is not required to be dismantled before its dispatch to the transferee State and is not likely to lose its accuracy by reason of such dispatch, it shall be known as a weight or measure of the first category;(ii) it is required to be dismantled before its dispatch to the transferee State and re-assembled and installed for use in the transferee State, it shall be known as a weight or measure of the second category.
• Weight or measure of the first category shall, before it is dispatched to any transferee State, be produced before the local Inspector in the transferor State and if such Inspector is, after verification of such weight or measure, satisfied that such weight or measure conforms to the standards established by or under this Act, stamp the same with such special seal as may be specified by rules made under this Act. While, weight or measure of the second category shall not be verified and stamped in the transferor State but shall be verified and stamped, after its reassembly and installation for use, by the local Inspector in the transferee State.
• The fees for the verification and stamping of every weight or measure of (i) the first category shall be levied and collected by the transferor State; and (ii) the second category shall be levied and collected by the transferee State.
• A weight or measure, whether of the first or second category, shall not require periodical re-verification if it is exclusively intended for domestic use and is not used by any member of the medical profession in the course of such profession.
• No dealer or manufacturer shall export or import any weight or measure unless he is registered as exporter or importer, as the case may be. Every person who intends to commence or continue business as an exporter or importer of any weight or measure shall make, within prescribed time, an application for the inclusion of his name in the register to be maintained for the purpose. The application shall be made to the Director and every such application shall be made in prescribed form and on payment of prescribed fees. On receipt of an application, the Director shall, if he is satisfied after such inquiry as he may think fit, that it is expedient in the public interest so to do, include the name of the applicant in the register and issue to the applicant a certificate to the effect that his name has been so included and send a copy of the said certificate to the Controller of Legal Metrology in the State in which such exporter or importer is carrying on his business.
  
  
• Standards of Weights and Measures (Enforcement) Act 1985

This Act was enacted to provide for the enforcement of the standards of weights and measures established by or under the Standards of Weights and Measures Act, 1976, and for matters connected therewith or incidental thereto.

As per the Act, in relation to any goods or things which are sold, transferred, distributed or delivered, or any service rendered (except those permitted under the Standards Act), no person is allowed to- (i) quote, or make announcement of, whether by word of mouth or otherwise, any price or charge; or (ii) issue or exhibit any price list, invoice, cash memo or other document; or (iii) mention any weight or measure in any advertisement, poster or other document; or (iv) indicate the weight or measure or number of the net contents of any package; or (v) express any quantity or dimension, in relation to any transaction, industrial production or protection.

Every person, who intends to commence, or carry on, the use of any weight or measure in any transaction or for industrial production or for protection, shall make, within prescribed time, an application for the inclusion of his name in a register to be maintained for the purpose, referred to as the 'Register of Users', in prescribed form and on payment of specified fees. This application shall be made to the Controller or to such other person as the Controller may authorize in this behalf.

On receipt of the application, the Controller or the person authorized by him shall include the name of such person in the Register of Users and issue to the applicant a certificate to the effect that his name has been so included.

The Act further states that no person shall make, manufacture, repair or sell, or offer, expose or possess for repair or sale, any weight or measure unless he holds a valid licence issued in this behalf by the Controller authorizing such person to do so.

Every person who intends to commence business, as a maker, manufacturer, repairer or seller of any weight or measure, shall make an application in prescribed form and on payment of prescribed fees, for the issue of a licence to him, and every licence so issued may be renewed if an application for its renewal is made by such person in the prescribed form at least one month before the expiry of the period of its validity.

• Rules relating to Weights and Measures

The specifications of measuring instruments used in commercial transaction, industrial production and measurement involved in public health and human safety are given in the Standard of Weights and Measures (General) Rules 1987. The Department of Consumer Affairs has already set in motion the process of adopting new specifications in these Rules in accordance with the recommendations made by International Organizations of Legal Metrology (OIML) to regulate newer types of weighing and measuring instruments. Towards this end, the Rules have been amended to incorporate new specification of automatic rail weighbridges, digital type clinical thermometers, automatic gravimetric filling instruments, Standard Weights for testing higher capacity weighing machines, discontinuous totalising automatic weighing instruments Sphygmomanometer and CNG gas dispensers based on OIML recommendation.

The Weights and Measures regulation in India also regulate the sale of commodities in 'pre-packed form' in the course of inter-State trade or commerce. The Standards of Weights and Measures (Packaged commodities) Rules, 1977 require the manufacturers/ packers to indicate mandatory declaration of certain basic information on the packaged commodities to safeguard the interest of consumers as well as ensure availability of the declared quantity of the product in the package. The Rules also require importers to provide certain basic declarations on imported packages, similar to those for indigenous packages. However, the entire Rules are being reviewed to make them simpler and transparent.