New Delhi, May 12 -- The Centre has amended rules to allow private, government-approved testing centres (GATCs) to inspect and certify petrol, diesel, and gaseous fuel dispensing machines, as it aims to reduce delays, ease compliance, and protect consumers, according to an official order reviewed by Mint. The calibration and verification certificate, which must be obtained every year, has become a massive exercise. As a result, government inspectors are often unable to complete the process on time, leading to operational bottlenecks for fuel retailers. Permitting government-approved private facilities will expand testing infrastructure and ease compliance burdens, while ensuring that that the dispensers are accurate and don't cheat consumers, a senior government official closely involved in the process said, requesting not to be named. The Department of Consumer Affairs, under the ministry of consumer affairs, food and public distribution, has amended the Legal Metrology (Government Approved Test Centre) Rules, 2013 to add petrol and diesel dispensers, CNG dispensers, LPG dispensers, LNG dispensers and hydrogen dispensers to the list of weights and measures that can be verified by government-approved test centres. Till now, such verification activities were carried out only through government testing facilities under the state legal metrology departments across different states. Queries sent to the Department of Consumer Affairs remained unanswered till press time. Expanding the GATC framework to such equipment would help augment verification capacity beyond the existing government system, the official cited earlier said. "Given that India is moving towards becoming a developed country, initiatives aimed at improving ease of doing business play a crucial role in that journey. The changes in the norms will help in faster verification and certification processes, reduce delays for businesses, and improve operational efficiency," the official added....