SHINE Initiative: Empowering Women at the Heart of India’s Quality Movement

Why in News ?

At the 79th Foundation Day of the Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS), the Union Minister for Consumer Affairs launched the SHINE Scheme (Standards Help Inform & Nurture Empowered Women) in New Delhi. The initiative marks a strategic shift towards placing women at the centre of India’s quality and standardisation ecosystem.

Background and Context: Quality, Households and Women

Quality standards in India have traditionally been associated with industry, manufacturing, and exports. However, a large proportion of unsafe products, substandard practices, and consumer harm originate at the household and community level, particularly in food safety, electrical goods, construction materials, and everyday consumer products.

Women, especially in rural and semi-urban India, play a central role as consumers, caregivers, micro-entrepreneurs, and SHG members, yet often lack awareness of safety standards and quality benchmarks. Recognising this gap, BIS has begun repositioning itself from a regulatory authority to a facilitative institution, with SHINE emerging as a flagship women-centric intervention.

What is the SHINE Scheme ?

SHINE (Standards Help Inform & Nurture Empowered Women) is a newly launched initiative of the Bureau of Indian Standards aimed at empowering women through standards literacy, safety awareness, and quality consciousness.

The scheme places women at the grassroots level of India’s quality journey, recognising their role in safeguarding families, communities, and livelihoods.

Key Objectives of the SHINE Scheme

• Empower women with knowledge of safety, quality, and standardisation
• Integrate standards awareness into households, SHGs, and community networks
• Enable women to become agents of consumer protection and quality compliance
• Strengthen livelihoods by linking quality standards with local entrepreneurship

Key Features and Implementation Strategy

1. Structured Training Programmes

• Capacity-building modules on product safety, quality marks, and consumer rights
• Focus on everyday goods such as food items, electrical appliances, and construction materials

2. Grassroots Partnerships

• Collaboration with NGOs, Self-Help Groups (SHGs), and community organisations
• Decentralised delivery to ensure last-mile reach

3. Community-Centric Approach

• Awareness campaigns conducted at the local and household level
• Women trained to act as quality ambassadors within their communities

4. Livelihood and Safety Linkages

• Promotes adoption of BIS standards among women-led micro-enterprises
• Enhances market credibility and income opportunities

5. Shift from Regulation to Facilitation

• Reflects BIS’s evolving role from enforcing compliance to enabling informed participation

Key Facts about the Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS)

• National Standards Body of India, established under the BIS Act, 2016
• Successor to the Indian Standards Institution (ISI) founded in 1947
• Mandate: Harmonious development of standardisation, marking, and quality certification
• Represents India in ISO and IEC
• Nodal Ministry: Ministry of Consumer Affairs, Food & Public Distribution
• Headquarters: New Delhi, with regional and branch offices nationwide

Significance of SHINE Scheme

• Women-Centric Governance: Aligns with women-led development and grassroots empowerment
• Consumer Safety: Reduces risks from substandard products at the household level
• Inclusive Quality Infrastructure: Extends standardisation beyond industries to communities
• Economic Empowerment: Strengthens women-led enterprises through quality compliance
• Behavioural Change: Builds long-term quality consciousness within society