The Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS) on Thursday conducted extensive raids on some warehouses operated by Amazon and Flipkart, confiscating thousands of products that lacked the required quality certifications, the government stated.
During a 15‑hour raid on an Amazon Sellers Pvt Ltd warehouse in the Mohan Cooperative Industrial Area on March 19, BIS authorities seized over 3,500 electrical devices, including geysers and food mixers worth approximately Rs 70 lakh.
In a separate operation at the warehouse of Flipkart’s subsidiary Instakart Services Pvt Ltd in Trinagar, Delhi, BIS discovered around 590 pairs of sports footwear that were packaged without ISI marks or manufacturing dates, valued at roughly Rs 6 lakh.
“These raids are part of the BIS’ ongoing efforts to enforce compliance with quality standards for consumer protection. Currently, there are 769 products notified for compulsory certification by various regulators and line ministries of the Govt of India,” the statement added.
The BIS's crackdown on e‑commerce giants gained significant momentum in March, with the recent raids marking the third such operation in a matter of weeks.
This renewed enforcement is not an isolated incident; over the past month, the product certification agency has conducted multiple raids on various Amazon and Flipkart warehouses across the country for selling products without the required certifications.
E‑Commerce Crackdown
The BIS recently carried out search and seizure operations at several warehouse locations of major e‑commerce platforms, including Amazon and Flipkart, in cities like Lucknow, Gurugram and Delhi to curb the sale of non‑compliant products.
In a statement, BIS reported that during a raid at an Amazon warehouse in Lucknow on March 7, 2025, officials discovered 24 hand blenders and 215 toys lacking the mandatory BIS certification. Similarly, during a February raid at an Amazon warehouse in Gurugram, BIS found 58 aluminium foils, 34 metallic water bottles, 25 toys, 20 hand blenders, seven PVC cables, two food mixers and one speaker that failed to meet compliance standards.
Concerns over consumer safety emerged after the Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS) seized thousands of non‑compliant items lacking the required BIS certification. The certifying body announced that it has filed a lawsuit under the BIS Act of 2016 to hold the responsible parties accountable.
As per the Act, defaulters may face fines up to 10 times the value of the non‑compliant products sold or offered for sale, with a minimum penalty of Rs 2 lakh. Violators may also face imprisonment for up to two years.
