Quality control necessary for country to compete with the world: Karnataka HC

Bengaluru: The High Court of Karnataka has rejected a petition that sought its interference in the quality checks on plastics imported to India.

As per a notification issued by the Government of India, quality control has been imposed on plastic imported into the shores of the country effective from January 5, 2024.

Calling it a necessary step for quality control, the HC in its judgement said, "If the quality emerges right from the word go, till the finished product, under the 'Make in India' programme, it is only then that the country would be able to compete with others. A step towards that will not be interfered with by this Court except, that if the step towards that, depicts palpable and demonstrable arbitrariness, which is neither pleaded nor present."

The All India HDPE/PP Woven Fabric Manufacturers' Association had filed the petition before the HC which was heard by Justice M Nagaprasanna.

In its judgement on January 8, the court noted that 'except contending cartelisation and nexus, there is no other submission made', by the petitioners.

Citing several earlier judgements, the HC said that the court cannot act like an adviser to the government on policy matters.

"A Judge in terms of his inputs, cannot assume the role of a supreme adviser to the administration on policies governing innumerable activities of the State, particularly in today's context of over-expanding horizons which come into the ken of such policy making," the court said.

The HC said that quality control was necessary for the country to compete with the world.

"If the product under the programme 'Make in India' is sought to be exported under the tag 'Made in India', quality insistence from the threshold would ensure that the final product would meet all the necessary global standards," the HC said.

Dismissing the petition, the HC said, "Quality control in plastic manufacturing always refers to the process of monitoring and inspecting various stages of manufacturing process to ensure that the final plastic products meet certain standards of quality."

"Therefore, every raw material now that is sought to be brought under BIS is only to make it a quality final plastic product, for it would not become hazardous to the environment and be of use to the general public and meet health and safety standards including food conduct regulations, as they are widely used in every walk of human life."