New Delhi, Jul 13 (KNN) Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) engaged in metal container manufacturing have urged the government to drop the steel and steel products Quality Control Order (QCO) for now.

QCO issued by the ministry of steel to impose mandatory BIS certification.

Earlier the government had issued the order on July 17, 2020, pushing units for BIS certification for the major input material required such as like tinplate, tin-free steel, and had also imposed restrictions on various steel products.

According to the industry association Metal Container Manufacturers Association (MCMA), this emerged as a significant cost challenge for MSMEs facing working capital crunch due to Covid disruption. Moreover, it was virtually impossible to force the international suppliers for BIS certifications as the procedure of BIS registration is highly cumbersome.

Reportedly, the association has now requested the government to defer the notification till March 31, 2022.

"In the wake of Covid-19, MCMA also recommended to defer this notification till March 2022,” the association said in a statement.

"Local mills claim to have an annual rated capacity of about 7 lakh tonnes but they have never been able to produce more than 4 to 4.5 lac tonnes. Tin-free steel is produced only by one mill which is Tin Plate Company, and that too once a quarter; hence they are never able to meet regular monthly/seasonal demand of the industry," it added.