Verification, stamping fee hiked for weights, measures

Revised after a gap of 11 years for autos, taxi meters, too

The Food, Civil Supplies, Consumer Affairs and Legal Metrology Department has hiked the verification and stamping fee for weights, measures, auto and taxi meters across various categories.

The fee hike, which has been effected after a gap of 11 years (in 2005), has been doubled in most cases. The hike has come into effect from January 25.

According to the Karnataka Legal Metrology (Enforcement) Rules 2011, any person using weight or measure for transaction will have to get the same verified and stamped by the jurisdictional legal metrology officer. 

The entire spectrum in the field of trade and commerce, industrial transactions – be it the goldsmith or old-paper mart dealer, the petrol bunk owner or the local grocery and vegetable vendor using weighing scales, volumetric scales, dispensers – will have to get their measuring instruments verified from time to time. In most cases, the verification and stamping needs to be done on an annual basis.

Multifold hikeThe department has also hiked the licensing and renewal fees for manufacturers, repairers or dealers of weights and measures. 

But here, the hike is multifold. The licence fee for manufacturers has been hiked from Rs 500 to Rs 3,000 and for dealers from Rs 100 to Rs 2,000.

Verification and stamping of auto and taxi meters across the State comes under the domain of the legal metrology department. The verification fee in case of auto and taxi meters has been hiked from Rs 150 to Rs 200.

The verification and stamping fee ranges from Rs 5,000 to Rs 10 depending on the instrument and their category. Weights and measures are classified into 17 divisions with hundreds of categories under them. 

(A sample of the categories is given in the chart along with verification fee).

Purity of goldSources said the department had also made it mandatory for all bullion traders to have scales with a calibration of one milligram, instead of 10 milligram, to ensure higher accuracy. 

The State has also written to the Centre to give its go-ahead to make it mandatory to mention the purity of gold and precious stones on cash receipts, along with their net weight. A response from the Centre is awaited.

The sources added that non-conformity to standards or failing to get verification and stamping done could lead to compounding of weights and measures and imposition of a penal fee.