Day 30 – Q 3.What are your views on the level of awareness with regard to consumer disputes jurisprudence in India? Which are some of the statutory and regulatory bodies working in this field? Discuss.

3. What are your views on the level of awareness with regard to consumer disputes jurisprudence in India? Which are some of the statutory and regulatory bodies working in this field? Discuss. 

भारत में उपभोक्ता विवाद न्यायशास्त्र के संबंध में जागरूकता के स्तर पर आपके विचार क्या हैं? इस क्षेत्र में काम करने वाले कुछ वैधानिक और नियामक निकाय कौन से हैं? चर्चा करें।

Introduction:

Consumer disputes jurisprudence is to ensure fair trade practices; quality of good and efficient services with information to the consumer with regard to quality, quality, potency, composition and price for their choice of purchase.

India has enacted consumer protection act, 1986 for consumer protection. The Consumer Protection Bill, 2015 and the newly enacted Bureau of Indian Standards Act, 2016 are efforts to provide the basis for such upgradation.

Body

My Views on level of awareness with regard to consumer disputes jurisprudence in India

• A substantial number of the rural people in India are living below the poverty line, having high level of unemployment and poor literacy level and consumer awareness continues to remain low. Under these circumstances, the sellers or the manufactures, exploit the consumer.
• Rural markets are full of sub-standard goods and duplicity of branded goods is another major problem in rural areas. As there is no check on production and sale of such products in the rural markets, many of these products have become health hazards.
• Services like insurance, banking, and electricity, medical have expanded without any checks and balances and consumers continue to be exploited by the service providers.
• The vulnerable sections are mainly women, children and farmers. It is common to find that farmers are supplied defective seeds, adulterated pesticides and other commodities.
• The expansion of mass media has further given impetus to consumerism in the rural areas. Therefore, now it is widely believed that the fate of the consumers cannot be left to the market forces. Hence there is need for consumer education.

Statutory and regulatory bodies working in the field of consumer disputes jurisprudence in India

• Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS) – It was set up under the Societies Registration Act 1860. It acts as the National Standards Body of India. The mandate of the BIS is to prepare and promote Standards for adoption by Indian industry and Product Certification.
• Central Consumer Protection Authority (CCPA) to promote, protect and enforce the rights of consumers. It has been formed under the Consumer Protection act, 2019. 
• Competition Commission of India – to prevent exploitation of consumers due to monopolization etc. 
• Banking Ombudsman at RBI – for banking related grievance redressal. 
• Food Safety & Standard Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) – for regulation of food items.  

Conclusion

There is absence of consumer demand for quality goods and services primarily because of lack of awareness. In short, there is absence of a quality culture in the country. If the quality of Indian products and their conformity with international standards is to be accomplished by Indian producers, the impulse must be generated from the consumers.