Mumbai: The Bombay High Court last week directed the Controller of Legal Metrology (CLM), Maharashtra, to ensure that auto-rickshaw fare meters manufactured by Global Meter Manufacturing Company (GMMC) are not sold until further orders.
A division bench of Justices Ravindra Ghuge and Ashwin Bhobe issued the order after discovering that GMMC had provided three different manufacturing addresses in official records. However, an inquiry revealed that the company was not operating from any of these locations in Pune. The court also noted that GMMC was selling meters made of plastic bodies across India.
Citing the potential sale of such meters in large numbers daily, which could complicate any recall process, the court directed GMMC to cease sales and distribution. The judges also ordered the CLM to publicize the order widely. Additionally, GMMC was instructed to submit an affidavit detailing its stock, including serial numbers and units sold over the last five years.
The bench acknowledged that the State Legal Metrology Department had the authority to inspect manufacturing facilities. It directed the CLM to inspect all addresses linked to GMMC, including the one for which manufacturing approval was granted in 2006, and to seize relevant manufacturing, sales, and distribution documents.
The court referred to a February 13, 2023, letter from the Vasai Deputy Regional Transport Officer to GMMC, highlighting complaints that the company had replaced metal bodies with unauthorized plastic bodies in its meters. Advocate Akshay Kamble had formally lodged this complaint on January 28, 2023.
Shocked by the bogus addresses, where a school and another company were found instead of GMMC’s factory, the court reinforced the ban on sales. It also directed the Union of India to verify the validity of the approval granted in 2006 for GMMC’s ‘RTX-2005’ series meters. The matter will be heard next on February 28.
