Indian Standard Time

Govt to shortly notify rules for mandatory use of IST: Pralhad Joshi

The government has decided to make mandatory the use of Indian Standard Time for all legal, commercial, digital and administrative activities, Food and Consumer Affairs Minister Pralhad Joshi said on Wednesday. This initiative will translate into more secure digital transactions, accurate billing in utilities, reduced cybercrime risks and synchronized timekeeping in transportation and communication. Presently, several systems rely on foreign sources of time. To make Indian Standard Time (IST) mandatory, the government will shortly notify Legal Metrology (Indian Standard Time) Rules, 2025. The draft rules were issued in January 2025 for stakeholders' feedback. On Wednesday, the Department of Consumer Affairs organized a round table conference on Time Dissemination here. Joshi emphasized on the strategic significance of the Time Dissemination Project being implemented by the department in collaboration with CSIR-NPL and ISRO. He said the upcoming rules will mandate synchronization

What is 'One Nation, One Time' and how will it benefit the country? Details

The Indian government has drafted comprehensive rules mandating use of Indian Standard Time (IST) across platforms to streamline timekeeping

Govt drafts rules for mandatory adoption of Indian Standard Time nationwide

In a move to standardize timekeeping, the government has drafted comprehensive rules mandating the exclusive use of Indian Standard Time (IST) across all official and commercial platforms, with the Consumer Affairs Ministry seeking public feedback by February 14. The Legal Metrology (Indian Standard Time) Rules, 2024, aims to establish a legal framework for standardising timekeeping practices, mandating IST as the sole time reference for legal, administrative, commercial, and official documents. "IST shall be the mandatory time reference across all sectors, including commerce, transport, public administration, legal contracts, and financial operations," as per the draft rule. Key provisions include, prohibition of time references other than IST for official and commercial purposes, mandatory display of IST in government offices and public institutions and requirement for time-synchronization systems to ensure reliability, availability, and cybersecurity. The proposal comes as part

Policy to make adoption of Indian Standard Time mandatory on anvil: Govt

The government is planning to come out with a comprehensive policy for mandatory adoption of Indian Standard Time (IST) nationwide, a senior consumer affairs ministry official said. The purpose is to ensure synchronization of all networks and computers to IST and adoption of IST by Telecom Service Providers, Internet Service Providers, power grids, banks, stock exchange, etc, the official said. Presently, IST is not being adopted mandatorily by all telecom and internet service providers. They are utilising the servers synchronised to other sources such as Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS). The Department of Consumer Affairs (DoCA) is already working on a project in coordination with the National Physical Laboratory (NPL) and Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) to generate and disseminate accurate time traceable to IST. Speaking to PTI, the official said the ministry is also planning to develop a comprehensive policy and regulatory framework for "mandatory adoption of

Government looks to synchronise Indian Standard Time with Rs 1-bn project

As part of the ambitious project, the ministry would strengthen the infrastructural facilities of five existing regional reference standards laboratories