BIS Withdraws 31 Indian Standards in 2026: Complete List and Business Impact

The Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS) has withdrawn 31 Indian Standards covering a mix of older electronic equipment, television and radio components, link and test connectors, a surgical retractor, pulse measurement, cloud computing terminology, alarm systems and radio-frequency cables.

The withdrawal date shown against all 31 standards is 17 August 2026. BIS issued the notification on 19 August 2026 under Rule 15(1) of the Bureau of Indian Standards Rules, 2018. The notification later appeared in the Gazette of India dated 1 September 2026. 

For most businesses, the real question is not simply, “Has this standard been withdrawn?” The more useful question is, “Are we still using this standard anywhere?”

A withdrawn IS number may still be sitting in an old drawing, purchase order, product specification, test report, customer requirement or tender document. That is where manufacturers, importers, laboratories and procurement teams need to look first.

The notification itself does not say that products covered by these standards are banned. It also does not announce automatic cancellation of BIS licences, mandatory retesting or a new certification requirement.

BIS Notification at a Glance

Here are the basic details of the notification.

The dates deserve some attention. BIS dated the notification 19 August 2026, but the Schedule shows 17 August 2026 as the date from which each listed standard stood withdrawn. 

So businesses should not treat 19 August or 1 September as the withdrawal date simply because those dates appear elsewhere in the Gazette.

What Exactly Has BIS Done?

The notification is clear about the action being taken. BIS has cancelled and withdrawn the Indian Standards listed in the Schedule, with the withdrawal taking effect from the respective dates specified in the notification.

This is the core regulatory action outlined in the notice.

Importantly, the notification does not introduce a new compliance framework. It does not prescribe new application procedures, certification fees, testing requirements, or transition provisions.

Nor does it state that products previously manufactured or marketed with reference to these standards must automatically be redesigned or removed from the market.

This distinction is important. Withdrawal of an Indian Standard is a standards-related regulatory action. It should not be interpreted in the same way as a Quality Control Order or another product-specific compliance notification that imposes mandatory certification or market requirements.

What Does Withdrawal of an Indian Standard Mean for a Business?

In practical terms, BIS is no longer keeping the listed standard in force from the stated withdrawal date.

What happens next for a particular company depends on how that standard was being used. For example, the IS number may appear in:

• a technical drawing, 
• a product data sheet, 
• a laboratory test method, 
• a supplier specification, 
• a purchase order, 
• a tender, 
• a customer contract, 
• an internal quality manual, or 
• a BIS-related compliance record. 

That is why simply reading the Gazette is not enough. Companies that use these standards should trace where the old reference exists within their own documents and processes.

Withdrawal also should not automatically be read as:

• a product ban, 
• cancellation of every BIS certificate, 
• mandatory product recall, 
• mandatory retesting, 
• mandatory recertification, or 
• an import prohibition. 

The notification does not state any of these consequences. Where a product is covered by a Quality Control Order, BIS certification scheme or another sector-specific law, that separate requirement needs to be checked on its own.

Complete List of 31 Indian Standards Withdrawn by BIS

The Schedule contains the following standards.

These entries cover electronic measurement, radio-frequency applications, television equipment and one medical/surgical equipment standard.

A large part of the Gazette is devoted to different parts and sections of the IS 13984 series for link and test connectors.

The final part of the Schedule moves from connectors to pulse measurement, cloud terminology, alarm systems and radio-frequency cables.

Which Technical Areas Are Covered?

The 31 withdrawn standards are spread across several very different fields. Treating them as one product category would be misleading.

1. Electronic Measurement and Signal Equipment

Several of the older standards deal with instruments used to generate or measure electrical and electronic signals.

They include standards for:

• radio-frequency signal generators, 
• audio-frequency signal generators, 
• electronic voltmeters, 
• cathode-ray oscilloscopes, and 
• electronic measuring apparatus. 

Companies dealing with old testing setups, service manuals or legacy equipment may still find these IS numbers in internal documents.

2. Medical Equipment

IS 8316 – 1977 covers a Retractor, Hajek's Pattern. Because this is a medical/surgical equipment standard, it should not be grouped blindly with the surrounding electronics entries. Anyone using this standard in medical-device documentation should review its present relevance separately.

3. Television and Radio Equipment

Three withdrawn standards deal with colour television receivers, high-frequency transreceivers and ferrite components used in CTV line output transformers.

These may be more relevant to legacy products, older component drawings and archival technical documents than to current mainstream equipment.

4. Link and Test Connectors

The IS 13984 family forms the largest block in the notification. It includes standards for:

• conventional wiring sockets, 
• printed wiring board sockets, 
• U-Link plugs, and 
• cord plugs. 

The important point here is the Part and Section number. A company should not simply search for “IS 13984” and stop there. The exact Part and Section used in a drawing or specification should be matched against the Gazette.

5. Cloud Computing

IS/ISO/IEC 17788: 2014, titled Information Technology — Cloud Computing — Overview and Vocabulary, is also withdrawn. 

This does not mean cloud services in India have suddenly become non-compliant. The standard deals with cloud-computing overview and terminology, and the notification does not introduce a new cloud certification requirement.

6. Alarm Systems

IS/IEC 60839-7-2: 2001 deals with message formats and protocols used for serial data interfaces in alarm-transmission systems. 

7. Radio-Frequency and Coaxial Cables

Four standards from the IS/IEC 61196-3 family have been withdrawn.

They deal with coaxial cables used in LAN and digital-communication applications, including specifications based on cable reach, transmission speed and dielectric construction.

Why Has BIS Withdrawn These Standards?

The Gazette does not give a separate reason for each standard. That means it would be unsafe to write that all 31 were withdrawn because they were “obsolete”, “replaced” or “technologically outdated”.

Some standards in the list are several decades old, but age alone does not tell us why BIS withdrew them.

The correct reading is simpler: BIS has formally withdrawn the listed standards, but this notification does not explain the individual reason for each withdrawal.

Has BIS Mentioned Replacement Standards?

No replacement or superseding standard is identified in this notification. That is a point businesses should handle carefully.

If a product specification currently cites one of the withdrawn standards, the next step should not be to pick another IS number that appears similar. The correct current reference needs to be checked from official BIS material.

Depending on the product, that review may involve:

• a later revision of the Indian Standard, 
• another Indian Standard covering the same subject, 
• an ISO- or IEC-based Indian Standard, 
• a Quality Control Order, or 
• a separate BIS implementation instruction. 

The Gazette itself does not answer those questions.

Will an Existing BIS Licence Automatically Become Invalid?

The notification does not say that every BIS licence or certificate linked to one of these standards is automatically cancelled.

The position needs to be checked product by product. A business should look at:

• the standard appearing on its licence, 
• the relevant BIS certification scheme, 
• any applicable QCO, 
• BIS implementation instructions, 
• any separate official communication, and 
• whether a current replacement standard exists. 

This is where a BIS certification consultant can be useful. The value is not in simply filling an application form. It lies in establishing what standard actually applies before a business spends money on testing, documentation or a fresh certification exercise.

What Should Manufacturers Check?

Manufacturers should start by checking where the withdrawn IS number appears in their existing records. A quick search of the exact standard number can help identify documents, specifications or processes that may still refer to it.

The review should cover key technical and quality records, including:

• Product drawings and specifications
• Bills of materials
• Testing and inspection procedures
• Quality plans and inspection criteria
• Supplier specifications and technical data sheets
• Customer approvals and technical submissions
• Existing BIS records and related correspondence

Once a reference is found, ask a second question: why is it there?

Sometimes the standard is merely a historical design reference. In another case, it may be part of a customer contract or regulatory requirement. Those situations cannot be treated in the same way.

Manufacturers should therefore avoid two extremes ignoring the withdrawal entirely, or immediately changing every document without checking the legal and technical context.

What Should Importers Check?

Importers often depend on documents prepared outside India. That makes old Indian Standard references easy to miss.

Supplier test reports, technical specifications and purchase contracts should be checked where one of the 31 standards is relevant.

Importers may also need to review:

• supplier declarations, 
• product technical files, 
• test certificates, 
• Indian compliance records, 
• vendor agreements, 
• customer specifications, and 
• QCO applicability. 

The Gazette does not say that imports automatically stop because a standard has been withdrawn.

If the product is subject to mandatory BIS certification, the current requirement should be checked separately before goods are ordered, tested or shipped.

What Should Testing Laboratories Review?

Laboratories may still have withdrawn IS numbers built into everyday templates and procedures.

Typical places to check include:

• test-method sheets, 
• SOPs, 
• report templates, 
• customer instructions, 
• technical worksheets, and 
• internal standard libraries. 

The laboratory should not silently replace the withdrawn standard with another test method.

Where testing is linked to BIS certification or another regulatory requirement, the correct current method should be confirmed first.

Tender and Procurement Teams Should Check Old Standard References

Procurement documents tend to stay in circulation for years, especially where older technical specifications are copied into newer tenders. That creates a real possibility that one of the withdrawn IS numbers remains in:

• government tenders, 
• private tenders, 
• purchase orders, 
• vendor qualification criteria, 
• technical bid sheets, 
• bills of quantities, 
• supply contracts, or 
• Product acceptance conditions.

A withdrawn or outdated standard does not, by itself, make an existing tender or contract invalid.

The key question is what the purchaser actually intended when the requirement was drafted. They may have referred to a specific historical standard, or they may have expected the latest applicable standard to be followed.

If the requirement is unclear, it is better to seek clarification before submitting a quotation or proceeding with supply.

What about Existing Drawings and Product Specifications?

This is one of the more practical consequences of the notification.

An older IS number may sit quietly in technical documentation for years. It may be copied from one drawing to another without anyone questioning whether the reference is still current.

Companies using any of the 31 standards should search:

• engineering drawings, 
• technical catalogues, 
• inspection plans, 
• vendor specifications, 
• compliance matrices, 
• production documents, and 
• product approval files. 

The main risk here is often inconsistency rather than an immediate legal penalty.

A drawing may quote one standard, a test report another and a purchase order a third. That creates avoidable confusion for engineering, quality and procurement teams.

How Can the Withdrawal Affect Different Businesses?

The practical impact of a withdrawn standard may differ from one business to another. Manufacturers and importers may need to review existing technical documents, supplier records and compliance references to identify where the withdrawn standard is still being used.

The impact will not be equal for everyone.

A company that has never used any of these standards may have nothing substantial to change. A manufacturer that still uses IS 13984 throughout product drawings and supplier documents may have a much larger clean-up exercise.

Risks of Leaving a Withdrawn Standard Unchecked

The Gazette does not prescribe a specific penalty for continuing to have one of these old references in company documents. Still, leaving the matter unchecked can create practical problems.

• Technical documents may conflict: One department may update the standard while another continues to work from an older specification.
• Test reports may no longer match the intended reference: A customer may expect testing against a current requirement while the laboratory follows an old instruction.
• Tenders may become unclear: A bidder may be unsure whether to quote against the literal withdrawn standard or another current requirement.
• Suppliers may continue using old specifications: If purchase documents are not reviewed, vendors may keep supplying against a reference that the buyer no longer intends to use.
• Compliance decisions may be based on the wrong standard: This becomes more serious where BIS certification or a QCO is involved.

Practical BIS Standards Withdrawal Checklist

This checklist is meant for internal review. It is not a list of new legal duties created by the Gazette.

What Businesses Should Do Now

The first step is not to file a new application or make immediate changes to your compliance process. Start by assessing whether the withdrawn standard actually applies to your products, operations, contracts or existing documentation.

Once that connection is established, the business can determine what, if anything, needs to be updated.

A sensible review can follow this order:

• Search internal records for the exact IS numbers listed in the Gazette. 
• Identify the products, components or processes connected with them. 
• Check whether the reference is voluntary, contractual or part of a BIS/QCO requirement. 
• Verify whether BIS has an applicable current standard. 
• Review recent test reports and laboratory instructions. 
• Check supplier and procurement documents. 
• Update controlled documents only after the correct replacement position is clear. 
• Keep a written record of what was reviewed and changed. 

This avoids unnecessary retesting, premature document changes or incorrect certification decisions. 

How Corpseed Can Help with BIS Certification and Product Compliance

For a company that still uses one of these withdrawn standards, the difficult part is usually not identifying the Gazette entry. The real work is understanding what the withdrawal means for the particular product.

Corpseed can support businesses through BIS certification services, product-compliance review and technical-document assessment.

• BIS Applicability Review

Corpseed can examine the product category and help determine whether an active BIS certification requirement, QCO or other regulatory framework applies.

• Review of Withdrawn Standard References

Technical files, test reports, specifications and compliance records can be reviewed to identify where the withdrawn IS number is still being used.

• Current Standard Verification

Where a later or replacement standard needs to be identified, Corpseed can support the review using relevant official BIS references rather than relying on assumptions.

• BIS Certification Support

If the product is covered by an applicable certification requirement, a BIS certification consultant can assist with documentation, testing coordination and the relevant certification process.

This can be particularly useful for manufacturers and importers that are unsure whether a withdrawn standard affects an existing licence, a new application or a product already under compliance review.

• Product Testing and Documentation Support

Where testing is genuinely required under the applicable framework, Corpseed can assist with laboratory coordination and technical documentation.

• BIS Compliance Support for Manufacturers and Importers

Corpseed's BIS compliance services in India can support businesses reviewing product standards, regulatory applicability, certification records and technical documentation.

The objective should be to make the right compliance decision first, rather than starting a new certification or testing exercise simply because a standard has been withdrawn.

Key Takeaways

• BIS has withdrawn 31 Indian Standards, with the withdrawal taking effect from 17 August 2026.
• The notification was issued on 19 August 2026 under Rule 15(1) of the Bureau of Indian Standards Rules, 2018.
• The affected standards cover a range of products and technologies, including electronics, medical equipment, television and radio components, connectors, cloud computing, alarm systems and RF cables. 
• The Gazette does not name replacement standards. 
• It does not state that products are automatically banned or that every BIS licence is cancelled. 
• Manufacturers and importers should check whether these IS numbers still appear in active product, testing or procurement documents. 
• A product-specific BIS/QCO review is more useful than making a blanket assumption about compliance. 
• Businesses that need help interpreting the current requirement can consider working with a BIS certification consultant or product compliance specialist.