Government panel to set timeline for adoption of standard chargers in India

The government has taken the first step steps towards moving the country to a European Union-like universal charger, which will save consumers the pain of having multiple chargers that cost money and reduce e-waste.

The department of consumer affairs has formed a committee to propose a timeline for the adoption of the USB Type-C standard charger for smartphones, tablets, laptops, and other electronic products, The Economic Times has reported.

The European Union has given nod to the common charger initiative, which will force all phone manufacturers to adopt one standard for all chargers.

The committee, headed by additional secretary (consumer affairs) Nidhi Khare, will hold its first meeting in the coming week to devise a plan of action to adopt the widely popular USB Type-C standard.

In November, mobile device makers and associations representing technology companies in India agreed to adopt USB Type-C as the standard charging port.

The Economic Times said more than 98 percent of Android smartphones use the USB Type-C charging standard, though Apple solely relies on its proprietary lightning port for iPhones.

The move will be welcomed by consumers. Even Apple has begun embracing the USB Type-C port on some 2022 iPad models.

India isn’t the only country that is set to adopt a universal charging standard. After the European Union mandated all manufacturers to use USB Type-C as a universal charging standard from fall 2024, a group of senate democrats in the US have called for similar norms.

The senators said that the EU had acted "in public interest by taking on powerful technology companies over this consumer and environmental issue" and the "United States should do the same".

The senators said that proprietary chargers such as ones used by Apple for their lightning ports create e-waste and financially burden consumers who own multiple devices from different manufacturers.

Apple was recently fined $20 million in Brazil for continuing to sell its phones without a charger. The Cupertino technology giant was also handed a fine of $2 million in 2021 for selling the iPhone 12 in the country without a charger.

In September, Brazil's ministry of justice banned Apple for the practice and ordered the cancellation of the tech giant's registration with the country’s telecom agency. Apple since appealed the decision.

As things stand, Apple will have little choice but to embrace the USB-C standard universally, as more countries move towards a single charging standard.