Rule 19 explained: this guide covers what it means, who it applies to, the step-by-step process, documents required, fees, due dates and penalties in India — so you can stay compliant with confidence and avoid costly mistakes.
Rule 19 sets out how a Legal Metrology officer checks a lot of packed goods at the factory of the manufacturer, or of the packer where the packer is someone else. It covers who may test, how samples are drawn and tested, what the manufacturer is handed, when fresh tests can be asked for, and the conditions on which a lot is approved for sale.
The Director, Controller or a Legal Metrology Officer empowered under section 15 may examine packages at the manufacturer's or packer's premises. Samples are drawn under the Fifth Schedule and tested under the Sixth Schedule; results go on the Seventh Schedule data sheet, which the manufacturer or packer signs and receives a copy of. After the 2017 amendment a lot is approved only if the corrected average is not below the declared quantity, no more than the allowed number of packages exceed the maximum permissible error, none exceeds twice that error, and every package carries the required declarations. Fresh tests on request cost Rs 2,500.
Who can inspect and where
Rule 19(1) says the Director, Controller or any Legal Metrology Officer empowered to inspect under section 15 of the Act may examine the packages and carry out tests "at the premises of the manufacturer or where the manufacturer is not the packer, of the packer". The purpose is stated: to ascertain whether any package or lot complies with the Rules "in all respects". That means both the quantity and the declarations are in scope.
The officer draws samples from the lot "in such manner and in such number" as the Fifth Schedule specifies, and the tests follow the method in the Sixth Schedule. The search, seizure and entry powers themselves sit in section 15 of the Act; for those see section 15 on inspection, search and seizure. If you are facing a notice after such a visit, our legal dispute resolution team can review the data sheet and the report against the Rules.
Sub-rule by sub-rule
| Sub-rule | What it says |
|---|---|
| 19(1) | Who inspects, where, sample and test method (Fifth and Sixth Schedules) |
| 19(2) | Results entered in the Seventh Schedule form; signature of manufacturer, packer or authorised agent, or of a competent witness if they are absent or refuse; a copy of the data sheet is given to the manufacturer or packer |
| 19(3) | A report on the declarations, the net quantity actually found and the extent of error, with a copy to the manufacturer or packer |
| 19(4) | Conditions that trigger fresh tests or a cent per cent check (layered, see below) |
| 19(5) | Original: manufacturer's own cent per cent check; a footnote says it "shall be omitted" (2017 amendment) |
| 19(6) | When a lot is approved for sale |
| 19(7) | Mandatory declarations to be ensured at the factory level (and depot) |
| 19(8) | Action after seizing five representative samples; the rest released once compliance is ensured |
The data sheet and your signature
Rule 19(2) protects both sides. The officer must record "the detailed results" on the prescribed form and ask the manufacturer or packer, or the authorised agent, to sign. Only if both are absent, or refuse, does a competent witness sign instead. The data sheet copy must be given to the manufacturer or packer, so you can check each sample's gross, tare and net figures later. Forms A and B of the Seventh Schedule are covered in the Sixth and Seventh Schedules article.
Rule 19(4): fresh tests and the layers of the text
The consolidated text prints two versions of rule 19(4) and (6). The older version (2011) looks at a "statistical average" and at any package with an error in deficiency "greater than the maximum permissible error". A footnote says G.S.R. 629(E) of 23 June 2017, in force from 1 January 2018, substitutes "the corrected average" for "the statistical average" and adds:
- the number of packages showing an error in deficiency exceeding the maximum permissible error must not exceed the number in column 4 of the Table in the Fifth Schedule; and
- no package may show an error in deficiency exceeding twice the maximum permissible error.
Where these conditions are not met, the officer is to require a cent per cent check of the lot and authorise sale only of packages within the limits; the remainder may be sold after being repacked or relabelled to comply. The printed text of clauses (b) to (d) is run together in the consolidation, so read the gazette version if the precise structure matters for your case.
Fresh samples
If the report shows a failure, rule 19(4) lets the manufacturer or packer, or their authorised agent, request fresh samples "for good and sufficient reason". The officer takes fresh samples "as soon as may be practicable", tests them under the Rules, and collects a fee of two thousand five hundred rupees. While fresh tests are pending, the proviso bars sale or distribution of any package from the previously tested lot unless the approval conditions in sub-rule (5) or (6) are met. Sub-rule (5) is marked omitted by the 2017 amendment, so the practical route is sub-rule (6).
Rule 19(6): when a lot is approved
As amended, a lot is approved for sale if the test shows that:
- the corrected average net quantity of the sample packages is equal to or more than the declared net quantity;
- the number of packages with an error in deficiency above the maximum permissible error is not more than the number in column 4 of the Fifth Schedule Table;
- no package has an error in deficiency above twice the maximum permissible error; and
- every package bears, or has a label bearing, the declarations required by the Rules.
The original 2011 text of sub-rule (6) was stricter in one respect: no sample package could exceed the maximum permissible error at all. The corrected average and the column 4 allowance came with the 2017 amendment. The maximum permissible error itself comes from rule 22 and the First Schedule; see rules 22 and 23.
Rule 19(7) and (8): declarations and seizure of samples
Rule 19(7) says the requirement of mandatory declarations "shall be ensured at the factory level and at the depot of the factory". The history is in the footnotes: G.S.R. 784(E) of 24 October 2011 said "either at the factory level or at the depot", and G.S.R. 832(E) of 23 November 2011 removed "either". Paragraph 7 of the Sixth Schedule still carries the "either" wording, so the two do not match word for word.
Rule 19(8) says that for non-compliance, action "may be taken after seizing five representative samples of the packages as evidence", and the rest of the packages may be released once compliance is ensured by the manufacturer or packer. The original wording, "released only after compliance is completed", was replaced by G.S.R. 784(E). What follows the seizure is in rule 20, discussed in rule 20 on action after inspection.
Practical examples
Example 1. An officer visits a biscuit factory and draws the sample size the Fifth Schedule requires for the lot. The data sheet is filled in and the plant manager signs. The officer hands over a copy. Later, the manufacturer reads that the corrected average is below the declared net quantity. Under rule 19(4) it may request fresh tests for good and sufficient reason, paying Rs 2,500, and must hold the earlier lot back until compliance is established.
Example 2. A packer's staff refuse to sign the data sheet. Rule 19(2) does not stop the inspection: the signature of a competent witness is taken instead, and the copy is still to be given to the packer.
Need help with a factory inspection?
A factory inspection turns on the data sheet, the sample size, the correction factor and what the report says about declarations. Our legal dispute resolution service can read those papers with you and help prepare a reply within the Rules.
Key takeaways
- Rule 19 covers inspection at the manufacturer's premises, or the packer's where they differ.
- Samples follow the Fifth Schedule; testing follows the Sixth; results go on the Seventh Schedule data sheet.
- You are entitled to sign the sheet and receive a copy; a witness signs if you are absent or refuse.
- Fresh tests on request cost Rs 2,500 and the old lot cannot be sold meanwhile.
- After the 2017 amendment the tests use the corrected average, a column 4 allowance and a twice-the-error limit.
- Text is as amended up to March 2022; check later amendments.
Read next
- Rule 19 Fifth Schedule: selection of sample packages
- Rule 20 of the Packaged Commodities Rules, 2011: Action after inspection
- Rule 21 of the Packaged Commodities Rules, 2011: Inspection at wholesale or retail premises
- Legal Metrology Officers: powers of inspection
Disclaimer: Based on the Legal Metrology (Packaged Commodities) Rules, 2011 (as amended up to March 2022; check later amendments), read with the Legal Metrology Act, 2009 (Act 1 of 2010), as on 30 September 2026. The Jan Vishwas (Amendment of Provisions) Act, 2023 (in force) and the Jan Vishwas (Amendment of Provisions) Act, 2026 (in force only from the date the Central Government notifies) amend the Act's penalty and procedure sections, not rule 19. State Legal Metrology rules, later amendments and notifications change; verify the current position before acting.