Manufacturing and Industries Practice
Our Manufacturing and Industries practice provides general regulatory advisory for manufacturers, industrial investors, and their supply chain partners on the legal and compliance framework for manufacturing operations in India. We advise on industrial licensing, BIS and quality control order compliance, PLI scheme advisory, supply chain contracts, and the environmental and labour law obligations that apply to manufacturing facilities. Our practice covers the regulatory framework applicable to manufacturing across sectors without implying specific sector depth.
- BIS registration under the Bureau of Indian Standards Act, 2016 and Quality Control Orders are mandatory for a growing range of products sold in India. We advise on the applicable certification requirements for each product category and on the compliance process.
- Environmental compliance for manufacturing units requires PCB consents under the Water Act and Air Act, EIA Notification compliance for applicable project categories, and hazardous waste management authorisation for applicable industries.
- Labour law compliance for manufacturing facilities involves the full spectrum of obligations under the four Labour Codes, contract labour management, standing orders certification, and Factories Act obligations until superseded by the OSHWC Code.
- PLI scheme compliance requires meeting investment and production milestones, maintaining domestic value addition records, and filing annual claims. Non-compliance with scheme conditions can result in recovery of disbursed incentives with interest.
- Supply chain contracts for manufacturers must address BIS and QCO compliance representations, product liability allocation, and indemnity from manufacturer to distributor in a manner that reflects the actual regulatory risk profile.
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Industrial Licensing and Manufacturing Setup
We advise on the regulatory clearances required to establish a manufacturing unit in India — industrial licence requirements for the relevant sector under the Industries (Development and Regulation) Act, 1951, factory registration under the Factories Act, 1948 (in force until superseded by the OSHWC Code in the relevant state), FDI approval for sectors with caps or government approval requirements, and state industrial promotion authority incentive schemes applicable to the proposed location. For manufacturing investment involving FDI, we manage the full FEMA and FDI policy compliance framework alongside the operational clearance workstream.
BIS and Quality Control Order Compliance
We advise manufacturers and importers on BIS registration under the Bureau of Indian Standards Act, 2016 and on compliance with Quality Control Orders making BIS certification mandatory for specific products. The list of products covered by QCOs has expanded significantly as part of India’s import substitution policy. For foreign manufacturers exporting to India, we advise on the Foreign Manufacturers Certification Scheme (FMCS) for BIS licence. Non-compliance with applicable QCOs is a significant customs and market access risk.
PLI Scheme Advisory
We advise companies investing under India’s Production Linked Incentive schemes across eligible sectors: eligibility assessment against the scheme’s investment and production thresholds; scheme application documentation and submission; ongoing compliance with scheme conditions including domestic value addition requirements, production milestone reporting, and the annual incentive claim process; and management of the scheme administration relationship with the sponsoring ministry.
“PLI incentives are performance-linked — they must be earned through investment and production milestones, and claimed through documented evidence. Non-compliance with scheme conditions can result in recovery of disbursed incentives with interest.”Supply Chain and Vendor Contracts
We draft and negotiate supply chain contracts for manufacturers — vendor and supplier agreements, long-term supply contracts, tolling and processing agreements, and distribution arrangements. For supply chain contracts in regulated product categories, we advise on the compliance representations and warranties that must be included to manage the manufacturer’s risk of a supply chain partner’s non-compliance becoming the manufacturer’s regulatory problem. For cross-border supply chains, we advise on import documentation, customs classification, and anti-dumping duty exposure. Across 13 partners and 220+ professionals from offices in New Delhi, Mumbai, Chennai, Hyderabad, and Bangalore.
Frequently Asked Questions
manufacturing-and-industries-practice-faq
The licences and registrations required to set up a manufacturing unit in India depend on the product and scale. The generally applicable requirements include: factory registration under the Factories Act, 1948 (or OSHWC Code where notified) for factories employing ten or more workers with power or twenty or more without power; environmental clearance under the EIA Notification, 2006 for applicable project categories; Consent to Establish and Consent to Operate from the State Pollution Control Board; and BIS registration or QCO compliance for regulated product categories. Sector-specific licences apply in pharmaceuticals, food, chemicals, and other regulated industries.
Quality Control Orders are issued by the central government under the Bureau of Indian Standards Act, 2016 (and previously under other legislation) making BIS certification mandatory for specific product categories before they can be manufactured, stored for sale, distributed, or imported in India. Non-compliant products cannot be sold in India. The list of QCO-covered products has expanded significantly in recent years; we verify applicable QCOs for each product before advising on the BIS certification pathway.
Production Linked Incentive (PLI) schemes provide financial incentives to manufacturers based on incremental production from a base year, subject to meeting minimum investment thresholds. PLI schemes have been introduced across sectors including mobile electronics, pharmaceuticals, automobiles, advanced chemistry cells, textiles, food processing, and others. Incentives are disbursed annually based on verified production claims. Eligibility thresholds, incentive rates, and domestic value addition requirements vary by scheme and must be verified from the relevant ministry notification.
Manufacturing facilities in India typically require: Consent to Establish (CTE) from the State Pollution Control Board before construction; Consent to Operate (CTO) from the SPCB before commencing production; environmental clearance from MoEFCC under the EIA Notification, 2006 if the project falls within a specified category and threshold; hazardous waste authorisation if the manufacturing process generates hazardous waste; and periodic compliance reporting under consent conditions. The applicable requirements depend on the product category and scale of the facility.
Manufacturers engaging contract workers through contractors must comply with the Contract Labour (Regulation and Abolition) Act, 1970 (in force until superseded by the OSHWC Code in the relevant state): registering as a principal employer, ensuring contractors are licensed for the number of contract workers they deploy, and remaining liable for statutory benefits (wages, ESI, PF) to contract workers if the contractor defaults. The principal employer must maintain statutory records relating to contract labour independently of the contractor’s records.