Consumer Dialogue · Protection and Consumer Welfare, understand the need and ... awareness...

Editorial Team Prof. Suresh Misra Dr. Sapna Chadah

Dr. Mamta Pathania

Research and Design Pankaj Kumar Singh

Contact us : Centre for Consumer Studies Indian Institute of Public Administration,

I.P Estate New Delhi - 110002 Tel : 011-23468349, 23468347, Email : [email protected],

Website : www.consumereducation.in

A Quarterly e-Newsletter

Consumer Dialogue

Vol. 12 No. 1 January - March, 2019

Centre for Consumer Studies, IIPA Sponsored by

Department of Consumer Affairs, Government of India

Centre for Consumer Studies @CCS_IIPA

Two Day Seminar on Consumer Protection

Education and Empowerment

Two Day Workshop on Consumer

Protection and Welfare

A Two Day Seminar on Consumer Protection, Education

and Empowerment was organized by the Centre for Consumer

Studies, Indian Institute of Public Administration, New Delhi in

collaboration with IIPA, Puducherry Branch, Puducherry from 7-8

January, 2019. The Department of Consumer Affairs, Government

of India, sponsored the programme.

The objectives of the Seminar were to enhance the

knowledge and skill of the participants in the area of Consumer

Protection and Consumer Welfare, understand the need and

importance of Consumer Protection and Welfare and the role of

various stakeholders, explain the various provisions of the Consumer

Protection Act and other legislations having a bearing on Consumer

Protection, discuss the legal dimensions of Consumer Protection in

different service sectors such as banking, insurance etc and enhance

knowledge and skill to provide consumers with information related

to products and services.

More than 80 participants including teachers, members of

NGOs and students from different colleges attended the Seminar.

The Seminar was inaugurated by Ms. R Alice Vaz (IAS) Secretary,

Civil Supplies and Consumer Affairs, Government of Puducherry.

She stressed that creating awareness to the general public about

redressal mechanisms for grievances should be accorded priority.

She emphasized that action is needed at all levels of society from

individuals, industry, government at central, state and local levels,

and civil society organizations, in order to reverse current trends and

live as an enlightened consumer. She said that consumers need to be

well informed, empowered and understand that their actions make a

difference.

Dignitaries during the Inaugural Session

Prof. Suresh Misra, Chair Professor and Coordinator CCS, IIPA addressing the participant said that due to lack of activism in this area, we are confronted with numerous problems such as deficiency in services and adulterated and spurious products which are further leading to health hazards. The Seminar was divided into various sessions covering Consumer Protection & Empowerment- An Overview, Consumer Protection: Education and Awareness, Consumer Protection and Working of Redressal Agencies in Puducherry-Panel discussion, Food Safety and the Consumers, Insurance and Consumer, Banking and Consumers, E -Commerce and Cyber Security, Legal Metrology and Consumers. The Valedictory Address was delivered by Shri. G Sandhakumar, Director, Planning and Research, Govt of Puducherry. The seminar was extensively covered by the print and electronic media. Prof. Suresh Misra and Dr. Mamta Pathania coordinated the Seminar.

The CCS, IIPA New Delhi in collaboration with

the Uttarakhand Institute of Rural Development and

Panchayati Raj, Govt. of Uttarakhand organized a Two

Day Capacity Building Workshop on Consumer

Protection and Welfare from January 17- 18, 2019, at

Rudrapur.

The Workshop was sponsored by Department of

Consumer Affairs, Government of India. Various experts

contributed their valuable views on the topics and

illuminated the participants consisting of 48 participants

who included members of PRIs, members of self-help

groups and Members of VCOs/ NGOs.

Two Day Seminar on Consumer Protection at Puducherry

Two Day Seminar on Consumer Protection at Uttarakhand

Two Day Seminar on Consumer Protection at SIRD U.P.

Rural Consumer Education and Awareness Camp at Kumbh Mela, Prayagraj

103rd OTP for Presidents and Members of District Forum.

15th Training for Heads and Members of VCOs/ NGOs in Consumer Protection

Release of CCS Publication

RBI spots fraud, wipes out bank balance via UPI, alarm sounded

Remove 'fake' content on food quality, Government

tells Facebook, Google

UGC bans distance learning degree programmes in

agriculture and other professional studies

E-tailers may have to register entities in India

SC asks Developer to refund the Buyer in case of

failure to provide Possession

FSSAI directs FBOs to label ‘Atta’ as whole wheat flour and ‘Maida’ as Refined Wheat Flour

Participants with programme Team


2

Two Day Workshop on Consumer Protection for Service Providers

Rural Consumer Education and Awareness Camp at Kumbh Mela, Prayagraj

The objectives of the Workshop were to sensitize the participants

about the developments taking place in the area of consumer

welfare and the impact of globalization on the life of consumers;

explain the various provisions of the Consumer Protection Act

and other legislations having a bearing on Consumer Protection;

and to enhance the knowledge and skill of the participants in the

area of Consumer Protection.

Shri. H.C. Khandpal, Executive Director, UIRDPR

addressing the participants called upon them to make themselves

aware about the concept of consumer protection and welfare.

The Programme was divided into ten technical sessions wherein

inputs on a number of consumer issues were provided to

participants. The sessions were interactive and experts answered a

number of queries of the participants.

The programme ended with Valedictory Address by Dr.

Dhirendra Shah, Assistant Director, UIRD and Panchayati Raj. It

was expressed that such workshops on consumer issues is a very

good initiative. Consumer protection is very relevant topic in

today‟s globalised era. The present era is of mechanization,

everything is based on machines and there are always chances of

failure. Therefore we must be aware where complaint can be

made if things go wrong. We all must be aware about our rights

as well as duties as consumers. However, we are unaware about

our rights as consumers and thus suffer in silence. Therefore,

there is need to generate awareness among rural consumers.

Information must flow from one to another. If information is

shared through chain reaction, the whole society will be aware

about their rights and responsibilities.

A three day awareness camp was organized under the aegis

of Centre for Consumer Studies, IIPA on the Holy Ganges

Ghat, Prayagraj during the Kumbh Mela from February

12–14, 2019. The camp was organized with an objective of

spreading awareness regarding consumer rights and duties.

During the camp, a two day seminar on “Ubharte

Digital Bazaro me Upbhoktavaad: Mudde aur Chunautiya”

was organized. 102 participants mainly from rural areas

participated in the camp.

In the Inaugural session the Keynote Address was

delivered by Mahamandleshwar Swami Prakhar ji Maharaj

(Shri Prakhar Paropkar Mission Trust, Shri Ganganagar

Rajasthan). In his address he stressed on the rapid change in

nature of market in present digital era. Increasing use of the

Internet has made the task of both the consumer and the

merchant easier. But, due to the absence of awareness, there

are also victims of the thug.

In such a way both the government and the society

should work together for the welfare of the Consumer. In

order to emphasize the need to create awareness among rural

consumers, nearly 6500 copies of Pamphlets and other

awareness materials on consumer awareness were

distributed among consumers at the Mela during the camp.

There was a detailed discussion on the functioning

of the Consumer Courts and Relief to the Consumer,

Environmental Protection, Frauds during Online Shopping

and ways to avoid them, Impact of Misleading

Advertisements on Consumers and the precautions to be

taken during the payment of digital media, etc.

Dignitaries addressing to the Participants

Two Day Workshop on “Consumer Protection and

Empowerment of Panchayati Raj Institutions, Rural Development

Officials and Service Providers” was organised by the Centre for

Consumer Studies, the Indian Institute of Public Administration,

New Delhi on February 12-13, 2019 at Amroha in collaboration

with Regional Training Centre, Ghaziabad of SIRD Lucknow,

Uttar Pradesh.

The programme was sponsored by the Department of

Consumer Affairs, GoI. Around ninety participants attended the

programme who included members of PRIs, village and block

level officials, school teachers, service providers, social workers

and Members of VCOs/ NGOs.

The objective of the programme was to build capacity of

the people working at grass root level about consumer rights and

Consumer Protection Act. The aim was to generate pool of local

experts who can spread awareness in rural areas and at grass root

level.

Dignitaries Lighting the Lamp.

The programme was divided into a number of

thematic sessions wherein inputs on a number of subjects

which are of relevance for common consumers was provided.

The Programme was inaugurated by Prof Suresh

Misra, Chair Professor & Coordinator, Centre for Consumer

Studies. He said that we all are consumers. We consume a

number of goods and services daily and get cheated. But we

all are silent sufferers. The topic of consumer protection and

empowerment deals with the life of the common man.

Therefore, there is need to generate awareness among

consumers as well as strengthen the system of justice under

Consumer Protection Act to build consumer confidence in the

system.

3


104th Orientation Training Progamme for the Presidents and Members of District Consumer

Forums

15th Training of Trainers Programme for Heads and Members of VCOs/ NGOs on

Consumer Protection & Welfare

The 104th Orientation Training Programme for the

Presidents and Members of the District Consumer Forums

was organized by the Centre for Consumer Studies, Indian

Institute of Public Administration, New Delhi from February

17-22, 2019. The programme was sponsored by the Depart-

ment of Consumer Affairs, GoI. Twenty-Seven Presidents

and Members of the District Forums from Bihar and Odisha

attended the programme. The objective of the programme

was to build the capacity of the Presidents and Members of

the District Forums to enable the redressal mechanism func-

tion effectively.

The Programme was inaugurated by Hon‟ble Mr.

Justice V. B. Gupta, Former Member, NCDRC. He said that

as Presidents and Members of the Consumer Forums, all of

you have been entrusted with the responsibility of protecting

the consumers against the traders. Nowadays traders are

adopting innovative ways of selling goods and services and

in process cheat the consumers. New Consumer Protection

Bill has been introduced to provide protection against new

emerging challenges. The Consumer Protection Act, 1986

provides relief to consumers who buy products as well

services. Now Consumer knows how to seek justice in case

he faces some problems. It is duty of the traders to ensure

consumer safety. He advised the participants to follow Prin-

ciples of Natural Justice and summary procedure to give

speedy justice to consumers. He appealed to the participants

to be more consumer friendly in their approach.

The programme was divided into a number of

thematic sessions wherein inputs on a various subjects

having bearing on the working of the District Forums were

discussed. During the Programme, the participants visited the

National Commission and interacted with Hon‟ble Mr.

Justice R. K, Agrawal, President, NCDRC.

The Valedictory Address in the programme was

delivered by Dr. S. M. Kantikar, Member, NCDRC. He said

that the idea of the forums is to give remedy to the

consumers as early as possible. The District Forums are the

basic units and first level of interaction with the consumers.

The consumer will have faith in the system only if the orders

are given in time. He also discussed some of the latest and

important judgments of NCDRC on medical negligence.

Hon‟ble Mr. Justice V. B. Gupta, Former Member, NCDRC addressing the

Participants

The Centre for Consumer Studies, IIPA, New Delhi organised the 15th Training of Trainers Programme for the Heads and Members of VCOs/ NGOs on Consumer Protection and Consumer Welfare from March 25-29, 2019 at IIPA, New Delhi. The Department of Consumer Affairs, Government of India, sponsored the Programme. The objectives of the training programme were to: enhance their knowledge and skill in the area of

Consumer Protection and Consumer Welfare; understand the need and importance of Consumer Protection and Welfare; acquaint them with the national and international dimensions of Consumer Protection and the role of various stakeholders; explain the various provisions of the Consumer Protection Act and other legislations having a bearing on Consumer Protection; discuss the legal dimensions of Consumer Protection in different service sectors such as, medical, banking etc. and also develop training skills. Total 18 participants from consumer organizations from different States attended the programme. Prof. Suresh Misra and Dr. Mamta Pathania coordinated the Programme. The programme was divided into a number of thematic sessions providing insight into various consumer issues.

Participants of the Programme

Release of CCS Publications

On the occasion of World Consumer Rights Day

celebration at DRDO Bhawan two Monographs

published by CCS, IIPA were released by Hon‟ble Mr.

Justice R. K, Agrawal, President, NCDRC and Shri.

Avinash K. Srivastava the Secretary, Department of

Consumer Affairs, GoI. These Monographs were;

„GST and Consumer‟ by Sapna Chadah and Prabhat

Kumar and „Generic Medicine and Consumer‟ by

G.N. Sreekumaran and Mamta Pathania. These

Monographs are available on our website.

4


RBI spots fraud that wipes out bank balance via UPI, alarm sounded

available in India such fake and malicious videos

erode the public's confidence about the institutions in

India which are performing their job with due

diligence.

The IT Ministry said that the FSSAI has

pointed out instances where the internet platforms had

been used to spread misinformation about food qual-

ity. Specific instances like creating false scare of plas-

tic eggs, plastic rice, and melamine in milk. One spe-

cific fake video which went viral on social media re-

lated to the presence of melamine in milk, wherein it

was maliciously projected that FSSAI had given per-

mission for use of melamine in the milk. The Ministry

also told the companies to institute a system as part of

their due diligence for prevention of uploading such

imagery/video/text.

FSSAI said that the false content on food safety had

created fear in the minds of the public and eroded their

confidence on food control systems in India. Such

false propaganda is neither good for citizens nor the

food business. This also erodes global trust in our food

system and food businesses, and potentially has far-

reaching public health, social and trade implications.

Remove 'fake' content on food quality, Government tells Facebook, Google

The Reserve Bank of India has warned banks of an emerg-

ing digital banking fraud that can wipe out a customer‟s

bank balance by using the Unified Payment Interface (UPI)

route. The modus operandi is simple: fraudsters get victims

to download an app called AnyDesk. Hackers get remote

access to the mobile through a nine-digit code generated on

the victim‟s device. Once a fraudster inserts this app code

on his device, he will ask the victim to grant certain

permissions, which are similar, to what are required while

using other apps.

This enables the imposter to gain access to the

victim‟s device as well the OTPs generated thereafter and

carry out transaction fraudulently. The modus operandi,

according to RBI, can be used to carry out transactions

through any mobile banking app or payment-related apps,

including UPI or wallets.

The central bank has sent an advisory to all

commercial banks as the magnitude of the threat could well

jeopardise thousands of crores of rupees in the accounts of

retail customers.

The government has instructed Google and Facebook to

take down 'false and malicious' videos and other content that

spreads misinformation regarding safety and quality of food

in India, saying that the 'fake' information is eroding the

public's confidence in institutions tasked with food safety.

The instructions to the global internet giants have been is-

sued by the IT Ministry that has asked the companies to im-

mediately remove such content and block the accounts of

people who are uploading the videos.

The order follows a complaint by Food Safety and Stan-

dard Authority of India (FSSAI) CEO Pawan Agarwal to

IT Secretary Ajay Prakash Sawhney.

It has come to the notice of IT Ministry that some

miscreants are misusing various social-media platforms for

circulating fake and objectionable material, including false

and malicious videos regarding safety and quality of food

If you are not satisfied with your bank's grievance

redressal process you can lodge a complaint with the

banking ombudsman. However, you need to follow a

certain process for filing such a complaint.

Here are the steps you have to follow.

Step 1: File a complaint with your bank and not the

banking ombudsman (BO) offices.

Step 2: If you don't receive a response within 30 days

or it is not satisfactory, approach the ombudsman.

Escalate complaint within a year of receiving reply or a

year and month of making representation.

Step 3: Complain to banking ombudsman within

whose jurisdiction the branch or office of the bank is

located. For card-related complaints or those related to

How to file a complaint with the banking ombudsman

5


SC asks Developer to Refund the Buyer in case

of failure to provide Possession

FSSAI directs FBOs to label ‘Atta’ as whole wheat flour and ‘Maida’ as Refined Wheat

Flour

centralised operations, your billing address will determine

the jurisdiction of the banking ombudsman.

Step 4: For written complaint, download, print and fill up

form available on www.bankingombudsman.rbi.org.in with

relevant details like name, address, facts around the com-

plaint, loss suffered and relief sought.

Step 5: Submit copies of documents that support your case

along with the complaint form.

Step 6: You can also file the complaint online (https://

secweb.rbi.org.in/BO/precompltindex. htm )

Step 7: The banking ombudsman will examine the case and

make a settlement through conciliation and mediation be-

tween the bank and the customer, or by passing an award.

Step 8: If you are dissatisfied with the ombudsman's order,

you can move the consumer courts.

The Food Safety and Standard Authority of

India (FSSAI) has directed food business operators

(FBOs) to label Atta as Whole Wheat Flour (Atta) and

Maida as Refined Wheat Flour (Maida) wherever the

same is used as singly or as ingredient in food items.

The directions came when various stakeholders

approached FSSAI to issue clarification regarding a

common name viz. Wheat flour/Refined Wheat Flour

in English for Maida.

The Food Safety and Standard Authority of

India (FSSAI) has directed food business operators

(FBOs) to label Atta as Whole Wheat Flour (Atta) and

Maida as Refined Wheat Flour (Maida) wherever the

same is used as singly or as ingredient in food items.

The directions came when various stakeholders

approached FSSAI to issue clarification regarding a

common name viz. Wheat flour/Refined Wheat Flour

in English for Maida.

FSSAI said that it has been observed that the Food

Business Operators are using term Wheat Flour as

English nomenclature for Maida on the label of the

food products which does not convey the exact nature

of ingredient used for manufacturing of various food

items to the consumers as well as enforcement officials.

Examining the matter, FSSAI has directed that

Atta should be labeled as Whole Wheat Flour (Atta)

wherever the same is used as singly or as ingredient in

food items and Maida should be labelled as Refined

Wheat Flour (Maida) wherever the same is used as

singly or as ingredient in food items.

According to the notification issued, FBO‟s

have been directed to comply with these requirements

by April 30, 2019.

A buyer cannot be required to wait indefinitely for

possession, said the Supreme Court while affirming

Consumer Commission order directing the developer to

refund the amount to the buyer. In the case (Kolkata West

International City Pvt. Ltd. vs. Devasis Rudra), the buyer

paid an amount of Rs 39, 29,280 in 2006 to the builder and

the agreement between them envisaged that possession of

the Row House would be handed over to the buyer by 31

December 2008 with a grace period of a further six months.

In 2011, the buyer approached the consumer

commission and prayed for possession of the Row House

and in the alternative for the refund of the amount paid to

the developer together with interest at 12% per annum.

Compensation of Rs 20 lakhs was also claimed.

The State Commission allowed the complaint by

directing the developer to refund the moneys paid together

with interest at 12% per annum and compensation of Rs 5

lakhs. The National Commission modified this order by

reducing the compensation from Rs 5 lakhs to Rs 2 lakhs.

The issue before the Apex court bench comprising

Justice DY Chandrachud and Justice Hemant Gupta in the

appeal filed by the developer against order of refund was

whether the buyer was entitled to seek a refund or was

stopped from doing so, having claimed compensation

as the primary relief in the consumer complaint.

6


UGC bans distance learning degree

programmes in agriculture and other professional studies

The University Grants Commission (UGC) has pro-

hibited imparting distance degree programmes in agriculture.

The decision was taken by the higher education regulator at

its last meeting on the ground that a degree programme in

agriculture is technical in nature as it requires practicals or

laboratory courses.

The matter was referred by the Union agriculture

ministry had referred the matter to the commission,

requesting it to consider prohibiting universities from

offering Open and Distance Learning (ODL) degree

programmes in agriculture. As per UGC Open and Distance

Learning Regulations, 2017, professional programmes such

as medicine, engineering, architecture, nursing, dental,

pharmacy and physiotherapy, are not permitted to be

offered in distance mode.

To protect the interest of the students already enrolled to the

agriculture degree programme, the Indian Council of

Agriculture Research (ICAR) has been requested for hand-

holding of such higher education institutions. However, no

new enrolments will be permitted from the 2019 session.

Nasik-based Yashwant Rao Chavan Maharashtra Open

University (YCMOU), Annamalai University, IGNOU,

Kuvempu University and Nalanada Open University are

among the institutions offering degree and diploma

programmes in agriculture science.

E-tailers may have to register entities in India

Consumer protection and how data generated is used

is at the heart of the draft e-commerce policy that was intro-

duced by the government. The 41 page document also puts a

slew of restrictions on how foreign online retailers, including

fast-growing Chinese e-commerce firms, operate in India.

Restricting cross border flow of data and leveraging it to help

startups are also some of the other key measures proposed in

the policy.

The draft policy, for which public feedback has been

sought by March 9, aims to strengthen consumer rights with

regards to counterfeit products and the overall grievance

mechanism, apart from putting in measures to stem the flow

of goods through illegal means into the country. The

draft policy comes after the government updated the

FDI policy for online marketplaces in December

which puts curbs on how large foreign operate in In-

dia. All e-commerce websites and applications avail-

able for downloading in India must have a registered

business entity in India as the importer on record or

the entity through which all sales in India are trans-

acted. According to the draft policy Consumer/

business payments from Indian banks and payment

gateways to unauthorized and unregistered (GST non-

compliant) sites/apps shall be barred.

Under current norms, consumers can shop

directly from foreign websites irrespective of whether

they are registered in India or not. For instance,

several China-headquartered e-tailers, including Shein

and Club Factory have not only been doing brisk

business in India but have been allegedly sending

goods directly to consumers in India in the guise of

„gifts‟ thus managing to escape import duty and GST.

The Government has proposed that in view of

the misuse of the „gifting‟ route, as an interim

measure, all such parcels shall be banned, with the

exception of life-saving drugs.

Consumer Dialogue · Protection and Consumer Welfare, understand the need and ... awareness...

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