The woven sack QCO for block bottom valve cement sacks has been deferred again. On 4 November 2026, two days before it was due to start, the Department of Chemicals and Petrochemicals (DCPC) published S.O. 6010(E), moving the Quality Control Order for polypropylene (PP) woven, laminated, block bottom valve sacks for packaging 50 kg cement (IS 16709:2017) from 6 November 2026 to 6 January 2027. That puts it on the same date as the two other woven sack orders DCPC deferred a month earlier: HDPE/PP woven sacks for 50 kg cement (IS 11652:2017) and PP/HDPE laminated woven sacks for mail (IS 17399:2020).
For sack converters, cement plants and importers, this is two more months of preparation time, not a reprieve. The orders still require the ISI mark under a BIS licence, and the deadline is now the same for every cement sack type.
What changed: the woven sack QCO deferral of 4 November 2026
The Gazette notification S.O. 6010(E), dated 4 November 2026, is called the Textiles — Polypropylene (PP) Woven, Laminated, Block Bottom Valve Sacks for Packaging of 50 kg Cement (Quality Control) Third Amendment Order, 2026. It replaces the commencement clause of the 2023 order so that it now reads that the order “shall come into force on the 6th day of January, 2027”. The amendment itself took effect on publication.
The previous date, 6 November 2026, had been set only a month earlier by S.O. 5479(E), dated 6 October 2026. The same Gazette issue of 6 October also moved the other two woven sack orders to 6 January 2027.
| Product | Indian Standard | Original order | Latest amendment | Comes into force |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| PP woven, laminated, block bottom valve sacks for packaging 50 kg cement | IS 16709:2017 | S.O. 5179(E), 6 December 2023 | S.O. 6010(E), 4 November 2026 | 6 January 2027 |
| HDPE/PP woven sacks for packaging 50 kg cement | IS 11652:2017 | S.O. 5178(E), 6 December 2023 | S.O. 5478(E), 6 October 2026 | 6 January 2027 |
| PP/HDPE laminated woven sacks for mail sorting, storage, transport and distribution | IS 17399:2020 | S.O. 5181(E), 6 December 2023 | S.O. 5480(E), 6 October 2026 | 6 January 2027 |
All three orders are issued by DCPC in the Ministry of Chemicals and Fertilizers under section 16, read with section 17 and section 25(3), of the Bureau of Indian Standards Act, 2016. The notifications give no reason for the deferral.
Why the BIS list still shows 6 November 2026
If you check BIS’s list of upcoming QCOs notified and due for implementation, it still shows 6 November 2026 for IS 16709 at the time of writing. That page was last updated on 30 October 2026, five days before the Third Amendment Order was published. The Gazette notification is the legal instrument, so 6 January 2027 is the operative date.
This is a pattern worth remembering for any QCO: secondary lists, including official ones, lag the Gazette. Before you plan production, a shipment or a customs filing around a QCO date, check the latest notification on egazette.gov.in and the issuing ministry’s site.
How often the woven sack QCO dates have moved
These orders were notified on 6 December 2023 and were originally due to take effect 180 days after publication. The notes to the latest amendments list how many times each date has been changed since. For the block bottom valve sack order, the amending notifications are:
- S.O. 2182(E), 4 June 2024
- S.O. 3939(E), 13 September 2024
- S.O. 5262(E), 6 December 2024
- S.O. 2552(E), 11 June 2025
- S.O. 4067(E), 4 September 2025
- S.O. 52(E), 5 January 2026
- S.O. 5479(E), 6 October 2026
- S.O. 6010(E), 4 November 2026
That is eight amendments to one order. The last two arrived at the last minute: S.O. 5479(E) was published on 6 October 2026, the very day the order was then due to start, and S.O. 6010(E) two days before 6 November. The HDPE/PP cement sack and mail sack orders have a similar history. It is tempting to read this as a reason to wait. It is the wrong conclusion: a deferral is never certain until it is published, and a manufacturer without a licence on the day an order does take effect cannot lawfully sell or supply the product.
Who the woven sack QCOs apply to
The three 2023 orders share the same structure. Each one:
- Applies to the goods in its Schedule, and does not apply to goods or articles meant for export.
- Requires conformity and the Standard Mark. The sacks must conform to the Indian Standard in the Schedule and bear the ISI mark under a licence from BIS, under Scheme-I of Schedule II to the BIS (Conformity Assessment) Regulations, 2018.
- Makes BIS the certifying and enforcing authority.
- Follows the latest version of the standard. A note to the Schedule says the latest version of the Indian Standard published by BIS applies from the date of its publication.
Source: the 2023 woven sack Quality Control Orders as published by BIS.
In practice this reaches three groups:
- Domestic sack converters who make block bottom valve, HDPE/PP cement or mail sacks for the Indian market. Each manufacturing unit needs its own ISI licence for the relevant standard.
- Overseas sack makers who supply these sacks into India. They need a licence under BIS’s Foreign Manufacturers Certification Scheme (FMCS). See our guide to the ISI mark certification process for how licensing works.
- Buyers and importers, especially cement companies. The order governs what can be manufactured, imported, sold or stored for sale, so a cement plant that sources non-certified sacks after 6 January 2027 is exposed through its supply chain.
What this means for cement plants and sack converters
The deferral changes one thing: the date. It does not change the standard, the scheme or who needs a licence. With all three cement and mail sack orders now landing on 6 January 2027, expect a concentrated rush of applications in November and December from converters who were waiting to see whether the dates would hold.
A few practical consequences:
- Lead times for testing will tighten. Woven sack testing for IS 16709 and IS 11652 covers fabric and sack properties set out in each standard. If many converters book laboratories in the same weeks, the queue lengthens.
- Test reports have a shelf life. BIS’s Grant of Licence guidelines dated 25 February 2026 say the product test report should not be more than 90 days old when the application is received. A report drawn in early November remains usable for a January application; one from the summer probably does not.
- Foreign suppliers need the most time. BIS’s FMCS FAQs put the average time to grant at about six months from a complete application, because the overseas factory must be inspected. A supplier starting now will not be licensed by 6 January 2027.
- Stock planning matters. The orders do not say anything about existing stock. Plan purchases so that non-certified sacks are used up, or are not on hand for sale or supply, before the commencement date.
What to do before 6 January 2027
- Confirm which standard your sack falls under. A block bottom valve sack is IS 16709:2017. A conventional HDPE/PP woven cement sack is IS 11652:2017. Mail sacks are IS 17399:2020. Our pages for PP woven, laminated, block bottom valve sacks and for all woven sack products under compulsory BIS certification list each standard.
- Register on Manak Online and prepare the application. Each factory files its own application for each standard, with a self-evaluation report, the application fee and the advance marking fee set by BIS for that standard.
- Get the factory ready for the BIS visit. BIS checks that the unit has the manufacturing and in-house testing capability the standard and its Scheme of Inspection and Testing call for. Incomplete documents, samples not offered on time and failed tests are what usually hold an application up.
- Book testing now. Under Option 1 (normal procedure) BIS draws the samples; under Option 2 (simplified procedure, where it is available to you) you apply with a conforming third-party test report. Either way, the report’s 90-day validity matters.
- Talk to your customers and suppliers. Cement buyers will start asking for the CM/L licence number. Overseas suppliers need to know that FMCS will not be in place by January if they have not started.
- Re-check the Gazette in December. Given the history of these orders, look for any further notification shortly before 6 January 2027, but plan as if the date will hold.
Woven sack orders this notification does not affect
DCPC issued five woven sack Quality Control Orders on 6 December 2023. Besides the three above, there are separate orders for HDPE/PP woven sacks for packaging fertilisers (IS 9755, S.O. 5177(E)) and for packaging 25 kg polymer materials (IS 16703, S.O. 5180(E)). The 4 November 2026 notification amends only the block bottom valve sack order. If you make fertiliser or polymer sacks, check those orders’ own amendments rather than assuming the January 2027 date applies.
Penalties for non-compliance
Contravening a Quality Control Order is punishable under section 29(3) of the BIS Act, 2016. The Act provides for imprisonment of up to two years, or a fine of not less than two lakh rupees for a first contravention and not less than five lakh rupees for subsequent contraventions, which may extend to ten times the value of the goods involved, or both. For more on how QCOs work, including deferrals and withdrawals, see Quality Control Orders explained.
How Aaditech can help
Aaditech helps sack converters, cement companies and overseas suppliers work out which woven sack QCO applies, prepare the factory and the Manak Online application, and get the ISI licence in place before the commencement date. Our promoters are former BIS Directors, which helps when a deadline is close and many applications are in the queue at once. Learn more about our ISI mark certification service.