New Delhi: The Centre has tweaked the quality control regime for electrical goods to allow testing and certification at laboratories owned by equipment manufacturers, officials said. These equipment- like circuit breakers - can now be covered under a modified quality control regime. This relaxation in norm will benefit companies wanting to shift electrical equipment manufacturing out from China, they told ET, since these products can be conveniently tested at more facilities."Effectively, India has doubled the number of labs where quality of electrical goods like circuit breakers can be vetted. These certifications are valid under Scheme X of the Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS)," a senior official told ET, adding that the heavy industries ministry is the first to allow testing under this scheme.With this, enforcement of the Electrical Equipment (Quality Control) Order, 2020 (EEQCO, 2020) can now begin. "The domestic industry was concerned since there is inadequate testing infrastructure to certify products for compliance with the QCO," the official said.115341668The quality control regime on circuit-breakers has become effective from earlier this week. A phased enforcement of QCO has been planned for switches, disconnectors, electromechanical contractors and motor starters, and semiconductor motor controllers, among others.Major electrical equipment makers have also proposed scaling up testing capacity considering the increase in demand for their facilities after the relaxation. "The private sector is expected to invest around ₹600 crore for setting up laboratories where electrical equipment can be tested and certified," the official said, adding that these companies hope to recover their investment by allowing their laboratories to charge a fee for testing equipment manufactured by other companies.Under the new regime, part testing can be carried out at BIS-approved third-party labs, BIS-approved manufacturers as third-party labs, and manufacturers' premises in the presence of BIS representatives."This reduces the compliance burden on manufacturers and also gives them an avenue to monetise existing testing facilities," the official said.According to the Indian Electrical & Electronics Manufacturers' Association (IEEMA), the domestic electrical equipment industry has about 45% share in the country's capital goods sector output. It commands around 7% of the total manufacturing segment in India's gross domestic product (GDP). The industry production has grown at about 9.5% compound annual growth rate (CAGR) over the last five years.