To genuinely protect consumers, the Act requires deep-rooted reforms — ranging from simplifying complaint processes to enforcing stricter packaging norms and curbing trade malpractices. Without these systemic changes, consumer rights will continue to exist more in policy than in practice
Consumer Protection Act 2019 needs root-level changes either in the Act itself or by modifications in rules so that need for filing complaints may not be arise. A verylittle fraction of consumers approach consumer-forums for their consumer-rights against malpractices of big manufacturers because of very cumbersome procedure and spent of so many man-days in consumer-courts.
Portal Jago-Grahak-Jago on the website of the Department of Consumer Affairs (Government of India) acts like a post office to deliver eye-wash replies from companies against whom complaints are lodged. Consumers are advised to approach Consumer Court if they are not satisfied with the replies of the companies received through the portal. The portal must be made practically effective with the Department made to scrutinise replies from the companies, and take the matter further in case replies are found unsatisfactory.
All companies should compulsorily put on their websites contact details including names of concerned senior officers and Directors. All such websites of companies should compulsorily give details of Government portals and consumer forms. Annual-Maintenance-Contracts (AMCs) should be practically made Extended Warranties since most companies fool consumers by not entertaining many aspects covered under AMCs.
All packaged commodities must be packed in the true metric spirit in either unit of 1, 2, 5, 10, 20, 50, 100, 200, 500, or 1000 and thereafter in multiples of 1000 basic units abolishing any need for printing unit-price on packs. A popular milk brand (Namaste-India) has started packaging milk packs at 950 meters and 1900 meters to look like earlier packs of 1000 meters and 2000 meters respectively. There are so many packages in milk and milk products like 400 mltrs, and 450 mltrs, confusing consumers to look like 500 mltrs.
Commodities like Ghee are packed in litres in packs of 1 or 5 litres, but in kgs in packs of 15 kgs. A uniform system should be for marketing such products either by weight or by volume.
Drug manufacturers at times cheat consumers by packing commonly advertised medicines like cough lozenges in eight per strip rather than the normal ten. Many drug manufacturers started packing medicines in strips of 15 rather than 10 simply to increase sales. The suggested packaging system may be for medicines also unless exemption is sought from the competent authority for dose-wise administration. At times gifts given by manufacturers to promote other products are swallowed by traders. The system should be to tie gifts with marketed products. “Not for sale alone†should be prominently printed on the gift.
Since the Supreme Court has allowed the use of A-4 size paper, any further production of legal-size paper must be banned. A slight modification in A-4 size paper is made from the present 29.5 cms x 21 cms to 30 cms x 20 cms to be in tune with the metric spirit.
Commodities and services with Government-administered prices should be in round figures of rupee one per unit like for petrol-diesel and in multiples of rupee fifty for commodities like LPG refill. Likewise, all postal-tariffs can be in multiples of rupee ten except for ordinary post-cards and registered newspapers which may have subsidised postal-tariff of rupee one. It will not affect consumers, since delivery-persons never return balance coins. Rounding-off prices can earn extra revenue for the Governments.
It is welcome that the Federation of Hotel and Restaurant Association of India and the National Restaurant Association of India have lost the case at the Delhi High Court challenging guidelines issued by the Central Consumer Protection Authority on levying service in bills of hotels and restaurants. Consumer Protection Act should be amended so that hotels and restaurants may not be able to impose any extra levy other than Government-taxes. Moreover, the Consumer Protection Act should ban the colonial practice of paying tips directing hotels and restaurants to prominently display “No Tips†boards.
India being the largest consumer base, can impose conditions on foreign companies exporting commodities to India to set up their manufacturing units in India especially when many such foreign companies flood Indian markets with products manufactured in countries other than the country of origin. An example is the setting up of the biggest manufacturing plant of Samsung mobile phones in Noida (UP). It will result in huge earnings of foreign exchange by way of export from India rather than the drain of foreign exchange in importing such commodities. The union Government should ban the import of items that are already available in India of much superior quality.
The Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS) should call a meeting of printer manufacturers including representatives of foreign companies to minimise types of ink cartridges. The largest selling foreign company Hewlett-Packard (HP) has too many types of ink cartridges of similar shape and size for their vast range of inkjet and laser printers.
Such standardisation will heavily reduce the cost of ink cartridges. The condition should be that such accessories may be allowed to be manufactured by Indian manufacturers. Standardisation of mobile chargers on lines of electrical plugs and sockets should also be done for mobile phones of all makes and companies.
Union Government should also induce standardisation of common accessories like tyres and batteries so that the same parts may be used in different models of cars produced by various car manufacturers. It will heavily bring down the cost of consumables through their bumper production in extra large numbers in some limited sizes and specifications. It can be achieved by merging some nearing sizes and specifications.
Such guidelines though also mentioned in the auto-policy of the Union Government, are never followed in actual practice. There may be just two variants apart from the third with automatic gears, one basic Lx for economy customers and the other Vx with all company-fitted extra accessories and luxuries for affording customers.
Presently there is no limit to the allowed total profit margin on a commodity between the maximum retail price (MRP) and the Ex-factory price of commodities allowing huge total trade margins. Even economically priced generic medicines have printed MRP which is ten times higher than their wholesale price. Such big trade margins induce corruption in purchases.
Moreover, victims are normal consumers, especially in rural areas, who do not have access to and knowledge of wholesale markets. Department of Consumer Affairs must fix the maximum total trade margin for any commodity to bring down the MRP of commodities.
Even renowned confectioners having daily sales in lakhs of rupees, do not issue bills resulting in big losses to the exchequer. Confectioners should be directed to compulsorily stick a copy of the GST invoice on each box of unbranded sweets sold in loose. GST authorities should be advised to have a common GST rate of say 12 per cent on all food items where presently luxury sweets attract a GST rate of just 5 per cent while salted items attract 12 per cent GST giving liberty to confectioners often selling both items to show more sale of sweets to save GST under composite-scheme.
Such can be the case with other unbranded commodities taxable under GST sold loose. Fear psychology should be developed whereby traders may themselves voluntarily issue GST invoices to customers even without being asked for.
National Anti-Profiteering Authority (NAPP) should entertain suggestions coming from experts and members of the public. A consumer forum in Chandigarh once imposed a fine of rupees 9000 on a renowned shoe company for charging rupees three as the cost of paper bags.
But the same company and many famous branded shopping malls, are still charging the cost of paper bags from the shoppers. Department of Consumer Affairs should prohibit by law the “selling†of shopping bags just for packing goods.
(The writer is a RTI consultant. Views expressed are personal)
