World Standards Day 2021: History, significance and theme; here's all you need to know

World Standards Day is observed on 14 October annually and aims to spread awareness about the importance of standardisation to the global economy among regulators, consumers and the industry. The day also pays tribute to the thousands of experts all over the globe who collaborated to develop the voluntary technical agreements that are known and published as the International Standards. History: The International Organisation for Standardisation (ISO) was established in 1947 with 67 technical committees. However, it was in 1970 that the first World Standards Day was formally inaugurated by Faruk Sunter, the then President of the ISO. The date was chosen as 14 October to commemorate the first meeting of delegates from 25 countries on 14 October 1946 in London, who decided to design a global organisation for facilitating standardisation. The ISO was created by them one year later. Significance: World Standards Day honours the contributions of organisations such as the International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC), International Ethics Standards Board for Accountants (IESBA), International Telecommunication Union (ITU), Internet Engineering Task Force (IETF) and the ISO, as well as the experts working with them. The day is dedicated to creating awareness about the importance of standardisation in today’s globalised world. The process of standardisation is an important tool for facilitating trade and overcoming technical challenges. Theme: The theme for this year’s World Standards Day is “Standards for sustainable development goals - shared vision for a better world”. The theme aims to address social imbalances, develop a sustainable economy and slow the rate of climate change. The organisation said that achieving these goals requires international cooperation and tools, including conformity assessment and international standards. The Kochi office of the Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS), which is the national standards body in the country, organised a virtual meeting on 12 October to mark the event. Around 110 industry experts, entrepreneurs, educational institutions technologists and officials having certification from BIS participated in the event.