Indore, July 12 (KNN) The Indore based footwear industry is seeking an exemption from Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS) norms for products lower than Rs 500.

Indore Footwear Manufacturers Association president Girish Punjabi said, “We support government’s intention for quality control. But BIS norms would escalate operational cost of manufacturing by making raw material expensive and lifting overall input cost. This would directly hit the product used by economically weaker section of the society.”

The association pointed out that the operational cost will increase by around 20 -60 per cent in different categories, worst hitting the low price range products.

Indore is home to over 50 small and medium size units, mainly specialized in manufacturing footwear from recycled material. The estimated market size of the footwear industry in Indore is around Rs 250-300 crore and products are supplied to seven states.

Manufacturers said specifications for raw material and other inputs used by the footwear industry under the BIS norms will kill the sector using recycled material for manufacturing footwear like chappals and rain footwear, reported TOI.

The mandatory quality standard norms will be implemented on small-scale footwear makers from January 1, 2024 and for the micro footwear industry the quality standards will be applicable from July 1, 2024.  (KNN Bureau)