New Delhi: Aiming for ‘One Nation, One Time’ and achieving precision in Indian Standard Time (IST), the Department of Consumer Affairs, in collaboration with the National Physical Laboratory (NPL) and the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO), has initiated a project to disseminate IST with millisecond to microsecond accuracy. This initiative involves developing infrastructure to distribute IST from five Legal Metrology laboratories across India.
Precision in timekeeping is critical for navigation, telecommunications, power grid synchronisation, banking, digital governance, and advanced scientific research such as deep space exploration and gravitational wave detection. Currently, many Telecom and Internet Service Providers rely on foreign time sources like GPS. Ensuring synchronisation with IST is vital for national security, real-time operations, and maintaining critical infrastructure.
A high-level inter-ministerial committee, chaired by the Secretary of Consumer Affairs and comprising representatives from NPL, ISRO, IIT Kanpur, NIC, CERT-In, SEBI, and key government departments, has been formed to draft policies, regulations, and legislation to mandate IST under the Legal Metrology Act, 2009. The committee has proposed the Legal Metrology (Indian Standard Time) Rules, 2025, which were published for public consultation on 15th January 2025. Comments can be submitted by 14th February 2025 via the department’s website: [Link](https://consumeraffairs.nic.in/sites/default/files/file-uploads/latestnews/Draft%20Rules%20Time%20Dissemination.pdf).
The rules aim to standardise IST as the mandatory time reference for legal, administrative, and commercial activities, prohibiting alternative time references unless approved. They require government offices and institutions to adopt synchronisation protocols such as Network Time Protocol (NTP) and Precision Time Protocol (PTP), with provisions for cybersecurity and alternative mechanisms. Exceptions are granted for scientific and navigational purposes under prior approval.
Mandatory IST adoption ensures precise financial transactions, efficient public transportation scheduling, synchronised manufacturing, and enhanced cybersecurity. This framework supports sectors like 5G, AI, IoT, and power grids while enabling efficient governance and economic growth. By implementing these rules, India moves towards a unified, precise, and secure timekeeping system, fostering technological progress and national resilience.