Industries, govt unite for sustainable development

Paonta Sahib in Sirmaur district today witnessed a vibrant celebration of World Standards Day 2025, where the Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS) organised a Standards Festival to highlight the significance of quality benchmarks in industries and everyday life. The event, hosted at a private hotel, drew enthusiastic participation from industrial representatives, jewellers, school students, government officials and local residents.

Local MLA and former minister Sukh Ram Chaudhary graced the occasion as the chief guest. In his address, he emphasised that every product must adhere to prescribed standards to build consumer trust. “Industries can sustain for a long innings only when they win the confidence of consumers. Collective efforts by industries, government employees and consumers are vital to achieving sustainable development goals, which will secure this planet for future generations,” he said.

BIS-Dehradun Director Saurabh Tiwari explained this year’s theme, Sustainable Development Goal (SDG-17): Partnerships for the Goals. He said BIS is reaching out to stakeholders through multiple programmes and also incorporating their feedback. “Life without standards cannot be meaningful,” he remarked.

Paonta Sahib Municipal Council chairperson Nirmal Kaur extended greetings on the occasion, stressing that standards form the foundation of quality living. She urged citizens to always check for the BIS mark while purchasing any product and underlined the responsibility of all sections of society in achieving sustainable development goals.

From the industry side, Arun Goyal, vice-president of the Himachal Chamber of Commerce, highlighted the credibility of the ISI mark. He appealed to industries outside the mandatory certification category to voluntarily join BIS so that their products could compete at international levels.

The cultural segment of the event brought colour and liveliness, with children from Standard Clubs of various schools presenting the standards song. Students of Government Senior Secondary School Burmapapri, Boys School Paonta Sahib, and Manpur Deora showcased skits and the traditional Sirmauri folk dance ‘Nati’. Mentors, industries, jewellers and resource persons who had excelled in promoting standards were also felicitated.

In the technical session, experts including Girish from Blue Star Limited, Amit Shukla from Tata Consumer Products, and Sheetal Kanchan from Gold Plus Glass Industry shared insights on how their respective sectors are integrating sustainable development goals. They encouraged participants to replicate such initiatives in their own industrial units.