Union Minister for Consumer Affairs, Food and Public Distribution, and New and Renewable Energy, Pralhad Joshi, on Thursday said that the finalisation and signing of the long-pending BRICS Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on cooperation in the field of standardisation would be “mutually beneficial” and “a win-win for all”, as India hosted the 5th Meeting of Heads of BRICS National Standardization Bodies (NSBs) in Bengaluru under its BRICS Chairship 2026.
India is hosting the two-day meeting on July 16 and 17, bringing together the heads of National Standardization Bodies from the 11 BRICS member countries to strengthen cooperation in standardisation.
“The aim of this meeting is to strengthen cooperation in standardisation,” Joshi said while inaugurating the event.
Highlighting India’s progress in standardisation, the minister said, “Over the last 12 years, India has significantly expanded its standards framework. Today, we have around 23,300 standards, and more are being added. Very soon, we will reach nearly 25,000 standards. This is the highest ever and reflects the rapid progress made over the past 12 years.”
Joshi said India has also aligned the vast majority of its standards with international benchmarks.
“There is also strong cooperation in standardisation among BRICS members. Nearly 98 per cent of our standards are now aligned with global standards. This means that the standards we prescribe are accepted in almost all major countries. That is what I mean by synchronisation,” he said.
He noted that the Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS) has led India’s standardisation activities for nearly eight decades and was formally designated as the country’s National Standards Body through an Act of Parliament in 2016.
The minister said BRICS currently represents 49.5 per cent of the world’s population, around 40 per cent of global GDP, and nearly 26 per cent of global trade, describing it as “a very strong grouping of like-minded countries.”
Referring to India’s BRICS Chairship, Joshi said, “This year’s theme is guided by a people-centric and humanity-first approach, as articulated by Prime Minister Narendra Modi at the 2025 Rio Summit. The theme for this meeting is ‘Building for Resilience: Innovation, Cooperation and Sustainability.'”
He added that BRICS cooperation now extends well beyond economic issues and covers areas such as counter-terrorism, climate change, food and energy security, finance, trade, WTO reforms, agriculture, labour and digital technology.
Highlighting the key outcome of the Bengaluru meeting, Joshi said, “One of the most significant outcomes of this meeting is the finalisation and signing of the BRICS MoU on cooperation in the field of standardisation. This MoU has been pending for several years. Its finalisation will be mutually beneficial—a win-win for all.”
Congratulating BIS Director General Sanjay Garg and officials involved in the negotiations, he said, “I congratulate Secretary Nidhi Khare, Shri Sanjay Garg and the BIS team for their continuous efforts. Because of their persistence, we have now finalised the MoU with all BRICS countries, and it will be signed today. This is a major achievement of the summit being held in Bengaluru.”
Joshi said the MoU will establish a formal framework for cooperation among the National Standardization Bodies of BRICS countries and promote information sharing, exchange of best practices, technical collaboration and capacity building.
The inaugural session featured a welcome address by BIS Director General Sanjay Garg and a keynote address by Department of Consumer Affairs Secretary Nidhi Khare. During the two-day meeting, BIS will also showcase India’s initiatives and achievements in the field of standardisation.
After the inaugural session, Joshi said in a post on X, “Guided by the theme ‘Building for Resilience, Innovation, Cooperation and Sustainability,’ we reaffirm our shared commitment to developing inclusive, transparent and globally relevant standards that facilitate trade, foster innovation, strengthen consumer confidence and support sustainable development.”
“As emerging technologies continue to transform the global economy, deeper cooperation in standardisation among BRICS nations will play a vital role in shaping a resilient, future-ready and inclusive global standards ecosystem. I am confident that the deliberations over the next two days will further strengthen our partnership and pave the way for meaningful outcomes that benefit our economies and our people,” he added.
BRICS comprises Brazil, China, Egypt, Ethiopia, India, Indonesia, Iran, Russia, Saudi Arabia, South Africa and the United Arab Emirates (UAE).
