ICMR-BIS develop national standards for assistive products

The Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR), in collaboration with the Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS), has successfully developed comprehensive national standards for the National List of Essential Assistive Products.

The joint effort was specifically aimed at harmonising Indian standards with global benchmarks, including ISO and WHO-APL frameworks, thereby ensuring that assistive products developed, validated, and deployed within India adhere to consistent quality and performance parameters, official sources said.

Assistive products are fundamental in enhancing functional independence, mobility, communication, and overall quality of life for individuals with functional impairments and elderly persons.

Therefore, the establishment and adherence to robust national standards for 21 products included in the National List of Essential Assistive Products (NLEAP) constitute a critical national priority, the sources said as these were recently unveiled.

Standardisation across design, manufacturing, testing, and service delivery is essential to ensuring quality, safety, and equitable access for all users.

This collaboration also strengthens the ecosystem for clinical validation, regulatory approval, and large-scale public procurement, enabling India to establish a robust, evidence-based framework for assistive technology provisioning and innovation, the sources said.