Consumers 1.1
POWER A bi-monthly resource for the consumers
Inaugural Issue May 2010
Rs.25
09 Charter of Telecom Services 19 Consumer’s Role in Dispute Redressal System in India
Are YOU the King in India? PA G E 5
Impact of Ads on Rural Consumers PA G E 1 0
State of Consumers in Shimla PA G E 1 6
Standards: A Part of Your Life PA G E 2 3
Customers of Mobile & Fixed Telephone & Television must read this for getting better services
Telecom Regulatory Authority of India BASIC INFORMATION Telecom tariff / charges and rates related issues +
The customer must be given complete details of tariff plan including charges payable for every item included in the plan within a week of activation of service.
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While taking the new connection, you can obtain the contact details of the Call Centre, Nodal Officer and appellate authority of service provider for making your complaints.
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No hike in any tariff item or charges is permitted during six months from the date of enrolment of the subscriber in a tariff plan.
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In tariff plans having validity of more than six months including lifetime plans no tariff item or charges shall be increased at any time during the promised validity period.
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'Lifetime validity' means the duration of the current license or renewed license of the service provider.
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The customer is free to move from one tariff plan to another, including post paid to pre paid and vice versa without paying any fee or charges for migration and without change of telephone / mobile number.
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Even if the talk time value has been exhausted, the prepaid customers should get all the services, which do not affect “talk time value�, like incoming calls/SMS etc. during the entire validity period.
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Unused balance in the prepaid card at the end of the validity period is to be carried forward if recharged during the grace period specified for the purpose.
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Fixed line and broadband customers to be given rental rebate for faults not rectified within 3 days of making complaint.
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No rental for national roaming facility. Receiving SMS is free while national roaming.
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Processing fee, if any, in the talk time top-up recharge shall not exceed Rs.2/-.
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Calling Line Identification Presentation (CLIP) facility cannot be made a compulsory item of tariff in any tariff plan. If chargeable, it shall be optional for customers.
Whom to contact in case of telephone / mobile complaints? How to stop getting unwanted telemarketing Calls and SMSs? Basic information about Cable TV Services in Conditional Access System (CAS) Areas TV services under Direct to Home (DTH) Individual consumer complaints / disputes TRAI invites all the stakeholders to visit its website: www.trai.gov.in for full Details of the Regulations, Tariff Orders, and Directions issued by the Authority from time to time.
(Issued in public interest by Telecom Regulatory Authority of India)
Mr. J.S. Sarma Chairman Telecom Regulatory Authority of India, New Delhi
Volume 1 . Issue 1
EDITORIAL TEAM Mr. Surinder Verma Dr. Navleen Kaur Ms. Manjeet Kaur Mrs. Sudesh Kumari Ms. Richa Priya Ms. Medha Kapoor Design & Layout Core Communications Pvt Ltd 0172 2613190 info@corepr.com
All articles and advertising material should be forwarded to :
The Editor
CITIZENS AWARENESS GROUP Room No. 3 (Basement) Karuna Sadan, Sector-11-B Chandigarh-160011
I
am happy to know that the Citizens' Awareness Group (CAG) is publishing bi-monthly magazine "Consumers Power". The Citizens' Awareness Group was registered with TRAI as Consumer’s Advocacy Group in 2007 and has acquired good knowledge about telecommunication services, regulations governing its provisions and redressal of consumer grievances. It has been organizing several seminars and workshops to generate awareness about the rights of consumers. Consumer Advocacy Groups play significant role in empowering consumers, particularly in matters connected with Telecommunications, Broadcasting and Cable Services. I am confident that the Citizens' Awareness Group would supplement the efforts of Telecom Regulatory Authority of India in protecting the interests of consumers and generating awareness about their rights. I wish the organization great success in its endeavors.
Tel & Fax : 0172-4007412 Mobile: 094170 08805 093177 25073 E-mail : citizenawareness@yahoo.com citizenawarenessgroup@gmail.com consumerspowerchd@yahoo.com Website www.cagchandigarh.in
J. S. Sharma
Processed and Printed at : Nex-Gen Graphibiz Plot No. F-191, Industrial Area, Phase 8-B, SAS Nagar, Mohali Punjab
Printed & Published by Mr. Surinder Verma, Chairman Citizen Awareness Group.
CONSUMERS POWER | May 2010 | 1
Mr. R.N. Prabhakar (Retd.)
Mr. Jagroop Singh Mahal
Member Telecom Regulatory Authority of India, New Delhi
President Consumer Disputes, Redressal Forum UT, Chandigarh
am happy to note that Citizen’s Awareness Group has started a bi-monthly magazine “Consumers Power” and this issue will focus on the consumer awareness in the telecom and broadcasting sectors.
t gives me pleasure to say that Citizens Awareness Group Chandigarh has started a bi-monthly magazine titled "Consumers Power". As we all know, consumers are the largest social group in any society. They face a number of problems relating to the goods purchased by them and services hired on payment. It is a common knowledge that in every sphere whether it is airlines, banks, railways, insurance, courier agencies, housing, building activity, trading, investments, education, telephone/mobile, electricity, water supply, hospital etc., the consumers hire services and in many cases face, problems like the cancellation or delay, repudiation of claims, levying of' heavy charges, medical negligence or non supply or short supply of goods. The consumers are the most unorganized group and need to be educated about their rights. Many of the consumers suffer deficiencies, losses and humiliation simply because they are not aware of the remedy or they feel that the damage caused is bearable as compared to the harassment and delay which they may suffer in pursuing the remedy before the Courts. The "Consumers Power" magazine being launched by the Group is expected to take care of these problems and impart not only education to the consumers about their rights but also assist them to redress their grievances.
I
The mission of Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) is to ensure that the interest of consumers are protected and at the same time to nurture conditions for growth of telecommunication, broadcasting and cable services in a manner and at a pace which will enable India to take a leading role in the emerging global information society. The service providers should ensure quality of service and attend to consumer grievances as per the benchmarks and procedures prescribed by TRAI. This is one of the concern of the regulator. In order to this concern and to achieve its Mission, TRAI has been conducting various regional workshops for capacity building of Consumer Advocacy Groups (CAGs) and consumer education at regular intervals at different places. The sole aim of this exercise is to raise consumer awareness as end users through CAGs. TRAI have been consistently striving towards improving the response of the service providers to the consumer needs and consumer complaints. Print media has always been playing a significant role in raising consumer awareness amongst consumers and service providers by raising consumer centric issues. I am sure your magazine will also contribute towards this aspect. I wish the Citizens Awareness Group all success in their foray to launch “Consumers Power” magazine and hope that the content of the magazine will be such that will enlighten the consumers about their rights and obligations for getting proper quality telecommunication and broadcasting services.
Mr. Ram Niwas Home Secretary Chandigarh Administration
I
t gives me immense pleasure to know that Citizen’s Awareness Group has started a bi-monthly magazine “Consumers Power” for the consumers of this region. I appreciate the working of the group with the objective of creating awareness about various issues related to health, literacy and consumer problem from its inception. I hope that this magazine will empower the consumers of this entire region by providing them timely information about the intricacies of market. I personally welcome the launch of the magazine here in this region, and congratulate the entire team of CAG for creating consumers.
Ram Niwas
I
I wish success to the Citizens Awareness Group, is the need of the hour.
R.N. Parbhakar Jagroop Singh Mahal
CONSUMERS POWER | May 2010 | 2
Ekkud% iFkizn’Zkd%
BUREAU OF INDIAN STANDARDS
Ms. K. K. Narang
I
The Group has been playing a vital role in spreading awareness amongst the masses about various consumers related issues. Their contribution in spreading public awareness about the rights of consumers has significantly supplemented the endeavor of Bureau of Indian Standards in creating awareness about various activities of BIS.
Food Corporation of India
Arun Kumar Gupta, IAS
Nilkanth S. Avhad, IAS
General Manager Food Corporation of India Haryana Region
Deputy Director General Bureau of Indian Standards
t gives me immense pleasure to know that the Citizen’s Awareness Group is launching 'Consumer’s Power' a bi-monthly journal dedicated to consumers.
Food Corporation of India
I
t gives me immense pleasure to know that Citizen’s Awareness Group has starred a bi-monthly magazine “Consumers Power” about various issues related to health, Literacy and Consumer problems for the consumers of this region. I convey my best wishes to the group and wish it all success.
General Manager Food Corporation of India Punjab Region
I
am pleased to know that Citizen’s Awareness Group (CAG), a voluntary organization, has decided to publish its bi-monthly magazine “Consumers Power” with an objective to generate awareness among citizens about their rights and responsibilities and simultaneously assist them in redressal of their grievances. I am sure that this effort of the CAG, would go a long way in fostering a sense of fraternity among the citizens. I congratulate the organizers and wish the publication a grand success.
Arun Kumar Gupta
Kindly accept my heartiest congratulations and best wishes for your magazine which I am sure will go a long way in further promoting the values concerning the consumers.
Nilkanth S. Avhad
Ms. K. K. Narang
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Editor Speaks
5 9
Is Consumer Really the King in India?
10 14
TRAI Basic Information
19
Investor Association recognised by Securities Exchange Board of India (SEBI) Consumer Advocacy Group, registered byTelecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI)
Telecom Services
Impact of Advertisements
16
CITIZENS AWARENESS GROUP
Dear Readers
Consumer Awareness
I am greatly pleased to present to our natured readers- the consumers community- with this newest magazine “Consumers Power”. In today's world, consumers wield the power…..the power to demand the best. In this issue, we had brought forward the rights of consumers in Telecom Industry. I am extremely delighted on sharing Basic information on Telecom tariff and rate related issues and about the Role of consumers.
Role of Consumer
I am heartly thankful to Mr. Bejon Mishra, Professor MC Pal, Dr. Akshat Mehta, Dr. Babita Aggarwal, Dr. Meenu Aggarwal, Dr. Mamta Mokta and Ms. Renuka Salwan for their intresting articles. Apart from the introduction to TRAI by Dr. Akshat Mehta, you will also come to know about the Common Charter of Telecom Services in this issue.
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Standards : A part of our Life
I feel extremely proud in incorporating the write-up on National Seminar on Role of Cosumer Disputes Redressal system in India: “Issues, Challenges and opportunities”. Seminar was co-ordinated by Professor MC Paul, School of Social Sciences, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi. Seminar was organised as a mark of respect to the true spirit of “UN Guidelines for Consumer Protection (UNGCP) issued 25 years ago in 1985.
24 26 28 30
TRAI : An Introduction
In a past few years Telecom industry has grown at a rapid pace with an upcoming of loads of telecom companies, which had left the consumer in a state of confusion. The choice is extremely difficult for the consumers of telecom industry as so many big brands have stepped into, leaving the market overloaded.
Child Labour in India
The Consumer Panchayat:
This issue is just one step forward in helping you to make the right choice and to update your knowledge as being a consumer. We shall appreciate your feedback and suggestions to help us in helping you. Queries are also welcomed.
Surinder Verma
Consumer Awareness Rights & Responsibilities
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Cover Story
Is Consumer Really the King in India? "Consumerism" is likely to dominate the Indian market in the coming years, thanks to the economic reforms in the present years and increased direct foreign investment in the retail sector. The transition will be from a predominantly "sellers market" to a "buyers market" where the choice exercised by the consumer will be influenced by the level of consumer awareness achieved.
C
onsumers are considered to be king in a free market; the sellers are guided by the will of a consumer. Webster's dictionary defines Consumerism as "the promotion of the consumer's interests" or alternately "the theory that an increasing consumption of goods is economically desirable".
consumer as envisaged in the Consumer Protection Act (1986) viz. Right to safety, Right to be informed, Right to choose, Right to be heard, Right to redress, Right to consumer education, Right to satisfaction of basic needs and ensuring right standards for the goods and services for which one makes a payment. The big "Consumerism" is likely to multinationals will leave no stone unturned to gain dominate the Indian the attraction of the market in the coming consumer and will try to years, thanks to the gain a respectable market economic reforms in the share. However, some of present years and the companies try to increased direct foreign engage in unscrupulous, investment in the retail sector. The transition will exploitative and unfair trade practices like be from a predominantly defective and unsafe "sellers market" to a "buyers market" where the products, adulteration, false and misleading choice exercised by the advertisements, consumer will be hoardings, blackinfluenced by the level of marketing etc. The earlier consumer awareness approach of caveat achieved. By emptor, which means "consumerism" we also “Let the buyer beware”, mean the process of realising the rights of the has now been changed to caveat venditor (“Let the
seller beware”). There is an active need for having awareness on the consumer protection rights.
Cosmetics Act, 1940. Even though different parts of India exhibited different levels of awareness, in general, the level of awareness was Evolution of Consumer pretty low. Indian Protection Rights in consumer movement India began with Passengers The consumer movement and Traffic Relief in India is as old as trade Association (PATRA) in and commerce. In Mumbai, in 1915. The Kautilya's Arthashastra, growth from there has there are references to the been incredible and the concept of consumer momentum of this growth protection against started during the ‘60s. exploitation by the trade In 1969, Monopolies and and industry, short Restrictive Trade weights and measures, Practices MRTP act was adulteration and enacted and MRTP. punishment for these Commission was set up offences. However, there under the provision of the was no organised and act. The act deals with systematic movement cases of restrictive trade actually safeguarding the practices, adversely interests of the affecting competition, and consumers. Prior to with unfair trade independence, the main practices arising largely laws under which the out of false and consumer interests were misleading considered were the advertisements. After this Indian Penal Code, act, consumer Agricultural Production, groupscame into force, Grading and Marketing emerged. The emergence Act, 1937, Drugs and
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of the Amartya Bag, B.A. LL.B. (1st Semester), KIIT Law School, KIIT University, Bhubaneswar, Orissa. Consumer Education and Research Centre in Ahmedabad, in 1978, was a milestone in the consumer movement of India. It provided a thrust and a direction to the movement in terms of a result-oriented approach through effective use of the law and the courts, and injecting professional inputs into the movement. In the 1980s was the time for the consumer rights and many consumer groups were formed in different parts of the country. In 1986 the Consumer Protection Act was enacted. In 1987, the Indian Standards Institute (ISI), which was started around 1947 as a membership society, largely dominated by industries, was turned into a statutory corporation called the Bureau of Indian Standards with greater participation by consumer organizations. Thereafter. in 1993, the Consumer Protection Act was amended overcoming few limitations and making it more effective and inducing the concept of consumer courts. Three tier consumer courts at the nation, state and district level known as the District Consumer Dispute Redressal Forum, State Consumer Disputes Redressal Commission, and the National Consumer Disputes Redressal Commission respectively were
established under the provision of the act. Consumer Welfare Fund was also created during that time. We have the Securities and Exchange Board of India, 1992, the Telecommunication Regulatory Authority of India, 1997, and the Central Electricity Regulatory Commission, 1998. Apart from these, a number of acts like Indian Contract Act, Sale of Goods Act, The Essential Commodities Act, The Agricultural Produce (Grading and Marking) Act, The Prevention of Food Adulteration Act, The Standards of Weights and Measures Act have been enacted by the Indian legislature from time to time to protect the interest of the consumer. The system has been considered as one of the best in the world in the matter of consumer protection.Consumer Awareness and Rights – a Ground Reality. Even with so many milestones, the system is not perfect and there are still hurdles in providing justice to the consumer in some cases. In spite of having a separate ministry or department of consumer affairs at centre and in every state, the reality is that consumer loses the battle every time and bows before the big wigs that own the industries and rein the huge consumer market in India. The consumer is nothing but a crownless king; the real power lies in the hands of big multinationals and retail
chains. Another reason may be the lack of awareness amongst the consumer about their rights. A recent study found that although the people have basic knowledge about the Weights and Measures Act but very few people have knowledge about the other laws like the Drug and Cosmetic Act Prevention of Food Adulteration, Food Product Order, The Essential Commodity Act Display of Price Order; Prevention of Black Marketing and Maintenance of Supplies. It was also found in the survey that the males are much more aware about the consumer protection laws than the females. It was also found out that the people were not aware about organizations working at district and national level. Out of total sample, 48 percent males and 20 percent females were aware of both consumer courts as well as consumer forums. Only 6 percent each of male and female respondents were aware about the SubDivisional Magistrate (S.D.M.) office. Very few knew about the public supply office. Majority of respondents i.e. 50 percent males and 12 percent females were aware about the National Consumer Forum at Delhi. 2 percent males were aware of Consumer Guidance Society, Hyderabad and Consumer Forum, Bombay. None of the female respondents were aware about
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Consumer Guidance Society and Forum. This survey shows how the consumer’s in India are unaware about their legal rights. Indian consumer’s want quantity not quality, they prefer to compromise rather than complain. Though charging of a good above the maximum retail price (MRP) is against the law, it is a very common observance that the seller tends to charge a good above the MRP. It is common that one has been charged above MRP for buying a bottle of mineral water at railway station or multiplexes. There are many goods which are sold in the market without much information about their quality, quantity and purity. In case of goods meant for mass consumption like, food, milk products, edible oils etc. the ingredients are not known. The big multinational companies make a huge profit from whatever they sell; they try to gain the attention of an average consumer through catchy slogans and advertisements with bollywood celebrities and cricket players as their brand ambassador’s to promote the goods. The consumer lured by the advertisement follows the preference of their silver screen idol’s blindly without knowing the ingredients of an article and suffers. Sometimes the sellers offers unrealistic schemes on
anything ranging from soap to a two-wheeler or a computer, the consumer is deceived by these schemes offered by the manufacturers, who spend crores of rupees on their brand ambassadors. The poor consumer, who is caught-up in ‘buy-one, get one schemes’ hardly finds time to apply his mind that it is he who pays everything, even for those so-called free-gifts and gold coins that are used as marketing tools. The tragic part of all this is that at the time of purchasing the goods, the consumer is never shown the clauses of warranty, written in the microscopic fonts, with so many “conditions apply” mentioned in the footnotes of these documents hidden somewhere in ‘owner’s manual’. The consumer gets this owner’s manual only after he makes the payment of the product he intends to purchase. However, a closer look at such ‘warranties’ makes one to ponder upon the fraud most of the companies commit with a consumer. Take an example of a two-wheeler or a four-wheeler purchased from any ‘reputed’ automobile company. The warranty says like this: “This warranty doesn’t apply to proprietary parts like tyres, tubes, battery, plastic items, bulbs, indicators, rubber components, grommets, ‘O’ rings, bellows etc.” Then what is left that comes under warranty?
There is another fraud attached to such goods. A branded company uses and assembles the tyres and spare-parts of lesser known companies. The consumer hardly knows about this arrangement, as no such trade secrets are revealed through the advertisements by the brand ambassadors. The poor consumer, who intends to bring home the ‘leader’ from the firm of international fame, comes to know about such fraud only after the purchase of the goods that are over stuffed with low quality desi spare-parts. Now have a look at the warranty card provided with any electric or electronic goods item, including television sets, DVDs, computers etc. The consumer is again duped in the similar fashion. Here again, the hidden warranty speaks something like this: “In the event of damage on account of high or low voltage, fluctuation in current, lightening etc, the warranty automatically null and void.” Is a consumer responsible for the high or the low voltage that is supplied by the electric department? Again, in case of refrigerators or air conditioners, the companies claim that they will not be responsible for the “leakage in the gas”, for which extra money is to be paid. Further, similar conditions prevail in case of automobiles, which say that there will be no replacement on rubber or plastic items,
notwithstanding the fact that the ACs or fridges are mostly made of such stuff. If there is no warranty on such items, then what is the warranty all about? Just to deceive the Indian consumer who simply purchase the goods thinking that the same can be repaired or replaced within the warranty period, while remaining ignorant of the basic difference between ‘guarantee’ and ‘warranty’. And when any aware consumer dares to challenge such ‘self-made clauses’ in the court of law in the event of any defect in the goods within the warranty period, he comes across with another problematic clause in the warranty that reads like this: “This contract is effective at a place where the company has a manufacturing unit (say at Mumbai) and claims if any, shall be made only before the courts having the jurisdiction in Mumbai and no claims shall be made outside Mumbai, notwithstanding that the refrigerator, two-wheeler, TV, etc may have been sold or delivered or any stipulation or commitment in respect thereof may have been made elsewhere.” Have another look at the clause in the warranty: “This warranty is in vogue only for a period of 12 months from the date of purchase.” The fact is that AC or fans remain off for at least six months a year in most parts of the country. Yet another
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clause says that if a machine has been negligently used, then the company is not responsible for the damages. Despite the existence of consumer forums at various levels, many people are compelled to go to the courts seeking remedies. In India sellers try to corner and catch the consumers on wrong foot in the courts of law by putting the onus of damage on to the consumer, declaring him as ‘untrained’ to operate the consumer goods, while arguing the cases through highly paid advocates. And the poor consumer, who is already depressed on account of
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Jokes for
Fun
Bank: A place that will lend you money only when you don't need it. CEO: Chief Embezzlement Officer. CFO : Chief Fraud Officer. ----------------What's the difference between buying a lottery ticket and buying a penny stock? In the first case, you help finance your local community swimming pool. In the second case, you help finance the stock promoters home pool. ----------------A long term investment is a short term investment that failed. ----------------A stockbroker is someone who invests your money till it's all gone! ----------------A market analyst is an expert who will know tomorrow why the things he predicted yesterday didn't happen today! ----------------Momentum Investing: The fine art of buying high and selling low. ----------------Value Investing: The art of buying low and selling lower Bear: What your trade account and wallet will be when you take a flyer on that hot stock tip your secretary gave you. Bull: What your broker uses to explain why your mutual funds tanked during the last quarter. ----------------QUESTION: When does a person decide to become a stockbroker? ANSWER: When he realizes he doesn't have the charisma to succeed as an undertaker. ----------------A stockbroker is a man who is always ready, willing, and able to lay down your money for his commission. ----------------The Pessimist sees the glass as half empty. The Optimist sees the glass half full. The Stock Market Day Trader JUST ADDS WHISKEY ...
having purchased a defective item, thinks twice before moving consumer protection forums or NGOs for the redressal. Can he afford to hire the services of a good advocate to fight the case against such multinational companies who have a turnover in crores of rupees per year? And then such forums too show inability at times to help the consumer, after going through the cunningness hidden in every ‘term and condition’ written in the ‘owner’s manual’. One wonders, who has authorised such companies to incorporate all such conditions that suit only them and not the consumer. The concerned ministry is aware of all this deceit and yet, the consumer is far from being the king. Why? For one, he is averse to be a litigant and prefers to suffer in silence. For another, the courts are so overburdened with cases, majority being trivial, that justice is invariably delayed, if not denied. The Consumer Courts were created with an objective to dispose the cases within a very short span of time, but the ground reality is that the case remains without trial for many years, thus defying the very objective of its establishment. Presently, the courts are located at district headquarters. This prevents consumers of far-flung areas, particularly in big states like Uttar Pradesh and
Madhya Pradesh, from approaching the courts for justice. A more desparate distribution of the redressal machinery is desirable. The cumbersome procedure for filing a case adds to the burden of a consumer in the process of getting justice. Consumers thus have the social responsibility of exposing the manufacture suppliers or the service providers for resorting to illegal trade practices. Unethical notings like “Goods once sold will never be taken back” are in sharp contrast to the practice in some of the developed countries, where the sellers declare; “In case you are not fully satisfied with our product, you can bring the same to us within a month for either replacement or return of your money.” This is the result of consumer consciousness. Consumers have to realize their role and importance. The consumer movements can be winner movements only with our active involvement by knowing our rights and enforcing them. Formation of consumer associations in every town would be the first step towards this path. It requires a voluntary effort involving the participation of one and all. If the consumers remain passive, they will continue to be exploited. It is necessary that consumers take action with solidarity to get a fair deal and timely
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redressal. An alert consumer is a safe consumer! There is a need for a fresh look at the machinery already set up to protect consumer interests. Establishment of more number of mobile consumer courts and fast track consumer courts to resolve minor issues should be done to make the judgement procedure fast. In the coming years, every consumer in his own interest has to realise his role and importance in the right perspective. In a competitive economic environment the consumer has to exercise his choice either in favour of or against the goods and services. His choice is going to be vital and final. He should realise his importance and prepare himself to exercise his rights with responsibility. It is very often stated "Customer is sovereign and consumer is the King." If that is really so, why do we have the Consumer Protection Act? Why is there a need for protecting the King? Should it not be rightly called "Consumer Sovereignty Act"? It is for the consumers to decide. After all the dictum in democracy is, the citizens get a government they deserve. Similarly, the consumer’s in society get a position in the market depending upon what they do or do not do. It is agreed on all hands that "consumer empowerment" in India has a long way to go. This is the right time to act.
Common Charter of
Telecom Services 2005
A
ll Service Providers acknowledge the rights of citizen’s to have a free choice in selecting their Service Providers and agree to promote their services in the best spirit of competition and traditions of service to consumer’s. All Service Providers agree to promote the consumers' right to education, choice, representation and redress. All service providers assure that the privacy of their subscribers (not affecting the national security) shall be scrupulously guarded. All Service Providers assure that their subscribers shall be entitled to interact with them, either personally or through their authorized representatives. For information and education of subscribers, all Service Providers agree to inform their subscribers of the broad range of services offered, the individual plans
available to them at any given point of time, the tariff rates applicable to each of these, their validity, terms and conditions, payment policies, the billing processe’s and procedure’s and the structure within the organization where information and clarification on consumer redress systems for complaints and billing disputes will be available with all their relevant contact numbers. All Service Providers agree to arrange human interface with responsible company executives whose name and identity are made known during the process of disputes resolution in addition to arrangements like Customer Care Service through Call Centres.
disputes. They also agree accompany the letter of to resolve the disputes as request. per the guidelines of TRAI All Service Providers issued from time to time. agree to provide in their bills related call and tariff All Service Providers details, payment agree to provide an applicant basic telephone procedures and list of connection within 7 days points at which payments of registration, subject to can be made by subscribers. technical feasibility and the mobile connection All Service Providers immediately subject to agree to register compliance of all required complaints in all areas of formalities by the their service immediately, subscriber. if delivered in person or All Service Providers agree to repair the faults within 24 hours of receipt of complaint from a subscriber, wherever technically feasible.
by e-mail and within 24 hours on receipt of the complaint by post.
All service providers shall render service without discrimination to All Service Providers every citizen as per his agree to ensure shifting of eligibility defined below telephone connection and who undertakes to within 3 working days pay all charges and within the same deposits: exchange, 5 working days “For the purpose of this for intra city and 30 clause, a citizen shall be working days for inter defined as an individual All service providers city exchanges and above the age of 18 or an agree to inform their closure (disconnection) of institution, NGO or subscribers on the reverse telephone connection business/service of each* bill, their within 3 days, on receipt organization engaged in consumer grievance of a letter of request from any activity which is redress process with the subscriber. An permissible under the respect to fault authenticated copy of the laws of the land”. complaints and billing last telephone bill shall
Continued on Page 15
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Impact of
Advertisements
on Rural Consumer Education and Behaviour shopping, newspapers, magazine, radio and television, influence us and increase our desire more and more. Choice of any thing is very difficult. Dr. Meenu Aggarwal Reader & Head, Economics, Because now a days Ginni Devi Modi Girls (PG) College, different brands of the Modinagar same product /materials are available in the market. How do rural n this story there are consumers decide what to no heroes and buy? Sometimes the price villains; just people for the same commodity is who believe they can buy different at different happiness, and places and at times one advertisers who support gets inferior quality this belief. Consumerism product for higher prices. is one of religion's modern Lack of awareness on the replacements and like part of rural consumer religion it actively and absence of rural encourages, then exploits, consumer organizations dissatisfaction with to protect their interests everyday reality. have complicated the process of product P. Lutus in Consumer evaluation by the rural August - 2001 consumers' aware about Choice is a fundamental their rights and the problem for all human objects available in the beings and it is also a complex problem because market. All human beings we are living in a kinds of have been consumer in every moment of their entertainment of Riches” life, night and day. A age. There are new rural consumer thus products, new kinds of participates actively in the entertainment and new economy from the day he services coming along spends his first paise for constantly. Window-
I
candy, lemon, drops etc.; his first contact with the economy begins in a retail store. As a rural consumer he has an important role to play in the economy. The way he performs will in turn affect the performance of the economy. Anyone who consumes goods is a consumer. Rural consumers get exploited in the market. They respond to advertisement and buy goods. Generally advertisements do not give all the information that rural consumer’s needs to know or wants to know about a product. In recent years behaviour of the rural consumer’s has changed. A few decades ago rural consumer’s was a silent person who uncomplainingly purchased the goods from
any place. But this is not so today. Now the consumer is the choice empowered consumer who decides the fate of the product with the rising of his earnings. Thus, the manufactures are continuously engaged to understand the complex consumer behaviour better and respond by offering goods and services as desired by them. However, in scarcity, the buyer is compelled to buy things whatever is available in the market. The key to ensure consumer satisfaction lies in understanding the consumers his likes and dislikes, his expectations and motivations, in short it may be called as “Consumer Behaviour.”Consumer
Consumerism is one of religion's modern replacements and like religion it actively encourages, then exploits, dissatisfaction with everyday reality.
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Behaviour refers to the acts of individuals directly involved in obtaining and using economic process that precedes and determines there acts Consumers behaviour research also considers that rural consumers make use of the goods they buy and the evaluation of these goods after use. Rural consumers make choice under the influence of two factors + Purpose, need or desire. + Behavioral pattern. Purpose, need or desire. A rural consumers will not buy a medicine unless someone is sick, if he is rational. But he may buy a cake if he is with his friends. He may not do so if he is alone. Event such as festival, marriages, birthdays, transfers etc. may occur which gives rise to needs for a specific period of time. Behavioral Pattern It is a familiar phenomenon to find people reacting to a situation or environment in different ways at different times; Behaviour and attitudes depend on a number of factors such as habit, recognition, and price impulse, emotion and unpredictability. These are briefly discussed below: + Habit + Recognition + Price + Impulse + Emotion + Unpredictability In general, rural consumers behaviour are influenced by tradition culture, religion, and
society of which consumer is a part. In addition, environment influences and purchasing power affects choices to a large extent. Rural consumer’s behaviour is also guided by those needs, which are as yet not satisfied.
Protection against all types of pollution. The consumer movement in India started in the begging of 20th century. The first known collective body of consumer’s in India was set up in 1915, with the 'Passengers and Traffic Relief Association' in Mumbai. It was formed Factors Influencing with a view to reduce the Consumer Behaviour hardships and trouble` faced by the passengers Needs / Attitudes/ Habits travelling by railways and That influence steamers and also to Consumption decisions redress the grievances of Consumer Choice the Indian Trading Behaviour/ experiences Community. that Reduce/ maintain or The 'Indian Association of enhance Lifestyle Consumer (IAC)' was set resulting in Consumer up in Delhi in 1956, and satisfaction Consumer all India Association for lifestyle consumers' interest with government support. This History of Consumer body had luminaries like Movement Shri Manmohan Sehgal, An important socioMrs. Shushila Nair and economic movement Shri Guljarilal Nanda, confronting the business among others. is the growth of The world has witnessed consumerism and the rapid growth in legislative measures to produce the consumers. It consumerism and hence consumer protection has is said that Indian consumers are cheated to become an important aspect of modern life. To the tune of Rs. 2000 protect the consumer crores annually through various countries have the various devices enacted consumer invented by the protection laws. India has businessmen and traders also witnessed a slow and hence, the need for consumer protection. The growth rule in India. The colonial masters brought protection that the consumer’s required is of with them mass consumption age in India the following types: and thus also came the Protection against unfair exploitation of and deceptive trade consumers. With the practices. Protection from monopoly growing of numbers of atrocities on consumer’s and restrictive practices. Protection against unsafe the government enacted series of consumer's or harmful products that protection laws. endanger the health and the well being of consumer.
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Impact of Advertisement on Rural Consumer Advertisements have become an important part of modern business and industry. It is therefore not surprising that we are confronted by them wherever we go, We see them in newspapers and magazines on television and the internet, hear them over the radio and see them on buses, taxis and trains. Advertising as an industry has been a steadily growing industry since the eighties. It is a complimentary relationship that develops for mutual benefits. Product and services' promotion through advertising requires large and extensive canvas and far-reaching and penetrating means of communication. Advertisements are created by sellers of goods and services to boost the sales of their products and often published or broadcast repeatedly in the media. The idea is that through repeated reminders, a customer comes to remember the product and, hopefully, ends up using it. All advertising is psychological. Their purpose is to create a demand, desire impression and to expand sales. This is to accomplish by attracting attention creating perception and interest and making the advertisement being understood easily, thereby arousing and creating a
favorable image. There are several so many impacts that accrue to consumers as a result of growth of large-scale advertising. These are as follows: Advertising is educational, as newer products are known; standard of living is improved and thus increased satisfaction in daily lives. Advertisements do benefit consumer’s in certain ways. For example, consumer’s are exposed to variety of brands for a given product. They are then able to compare the choices available and select the one that suits them best. Businesses also use advertisements to introduce new products. Consumer’s therefore receive information on the latest goods and services available in the market. As more and more new products become available, businesses are forced to produce goods of better quality and improve the level of their service to keep up with the competition. The availability of better quality and services obviously benefits consumer’s. Advertising helps in communication. Advertising is the brainchild of a mechandise. Advertising pays for most of our means of communication. It leads to communication at lower prices, thus permitting consumer’s, to have more purchasing power for other merchandise. Advertising
pays for most of our means of communication. Even a newspaper cost would be beyond the reach of a common man. The press and a large part of the entertainment industry like television, radio and magazines are at large supported by advertisements. Advertisement serves the public. Red cross etc. have been aided in many ways and as such it serves public welfare also. It informs consumers about where to shop. There is not a day of the week when consumers, are not advised of special sales in departmental stores, super markets or specialty shops. Homeowners receive valuable hints and proper product selection. Advertisement provides useful information for rural consumers also about products and their uses. It helps them to develop better habits and they improve better life style. For Example Advertisement reminds you to brush your teeth two times a day, use better shampoo for hair falling problem. Advertising maintains high standards. Since a vast majority of products succeed in acquiring a reputation, which leads to good public acceptance as a direct result of effective advertising, the sellers are forced to assume the responsibility to maintain the original specification of the products they seek to sell.
Advertisements awares you about the product like product price, availability about the product, sources, company name, even ingredients of the product. This information helps the rural consumer’s to save consumer’s time and efforts. Those people who are illiterate the see the advertisements and become aware about the product. They spend our money in the right way. Administration, advertisers of drug food, cosmetics preparations and vitamins frequently misrepresent their products by label advertising literature containing magic words. Advertising very often winds even greater victories through the line of appeals to sub conscious needs. Modern advertising specialists have learnt to successfully control feelings of quit, fears, loneliness, doubts and insecurity. One might properly classify the advertisers as:- Vultures who feast on the secrets, miseries, misfortunes and weaknesses of human beings. They work on man's mind and his soul”. Know a day's advertisement is an important source of income for websites, any show of the college also so many big and small company sponsors the shows, newspaper, magazines, radio, television etc. Advertisement provides direct and indirect employment to a large number of people creative
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director, writer, junior artist etc. Recently, the greatest emphasis has been on the depth approach. Clever advertising copy is especially aimed to promote purchasing through non-rational and impulsive logics instead of rational and logical approaches. The advertising has become a professional persuasion to manipulate the consumer's buying attitude. Advertiser’s reap rich dividend from the knowledge, that consumer on the whole are gullible and that few people have mastered the art of reading advertising material with a critical eye. For these reasons it is indeed like looking for the proverbial ”needle the haystack as contact less in a summing pool to collect a food sampling of straight honest advertisement”. Forms of Advertising There are so many forms of advertisements, including so many things in the advertisement which are as follows : + Direct-Mail Advertising + Informational Advertising + Institutional Advertising + Outdoor Advertising + Product Advertising + Speciality Advertising + Media + Social network advertising A new form of advertising that is growing rapidly is social network
advertising. It is online advertising with a focus on social networking sites. This is a relatively immature market, but it has shown a lot of promise as advertiser’s are able to take advantage of the demographic information the user has provided to the social networking site. Friendertising is a more precise advertising term in which people are able to direct advertisements toward others directly using social network service. Celebrities Advertising: This type of advertising focuses upon using celebrity power, fame, money, popularity to gain recognition for their products and promote specific stores or products. Advertisers often advertise their products, for example, when celebrities share their favourite products or wear clothes by specific brands or designers. Celebrities are often involved in advertising campaigns such as television or print adverts to advertise specific or general products. Covert advertising: Covert advertising is when a product or brand is embedded in entertainment and media. For example, in a film, the main character can use an item or other of a definite brand, as in the movie “Minority Report” where Tom Cruise's character John Anderton owns a phone with the Nokia logo clearly written in the top corner, or his
watch engraved with the Bulgari logo. Consumer Education Government and private agencies in India offer rural consumers education programmer and widely disseminated consumer information system. Some of the reputed private companies involve themselves with rural consumer’s education giving high emphasis to the motto “educated consumers make better consumers” along with their selling portfolio. Even after, consumer education in India is still practically not so widely spread, the Union Government has been making efforts to educate the rural consumers. The right to consumer education means the right to acquire the knowledge and skills to be an informed consumer. Thus, the right to consumer education envisages the right to knowledge and skills needed for taking actions to influence factors, which affect consumers' decisions. According to the guidelines, the governments should develop and encourage the development of general consumer education programmes, bearing in mind the cultural traditions of the people concerned. The aim of such programmes should be to enable people to act as discriminating rural consumers, capable of making informed choice of goods and services, and conscious of
their rights and responsibilities. In developing such programmes special attention should be given to the needs of disadvantaged consumers. The important points of Consumer Education are as follow : 1.Introducing rural consumer education in the basic curricula of the education system; 2.Governments to develop consumer education programmes in mass media aimed at rural and illiterate consumers. 3.Education programmes particularly for the benefit of low-income consumers in rural and urban areas; 4.Business to undertake/participate in factual and relevant consumer education programmes; and Governments to organize training programmes for education, mass media professionals etc. In the modern era it is mandatory to protect the rural consumers rights and empowering them by education. They should not take the decision always on the basis of advertisement. The cost of making advertisement is usually very high. Businesses have to spend large sums of money to get consumer’s to notice
and recognize their product. Part of this money goes to the production of the advertisement, packaging of the product and buying of advertisement space in newspapers and magazines, on billboards, television and the radio. The cost of advertising is partly borne by consumers, who end up paying more for a product than they would otherwise have to. Advertisement can be misleading. To boost sales, they are made to appeal to the purchaser's vanity-this expensive face cream will make you look beautiful; that vitamin supplement will help you stay young; these pills will make you slim without the need for exercise. Such claims are often exaggerated but believe by many. Advertisement was once upon a time the tool for creating awareness about their product among the people. But now-a-days it creates problem among the people and putting problematic burden on the families. Awareness has to be created among the rural consumers about the good quality of products and services. Largest number of consumers live in the rural areas in India. So protecting the rural consumer has to be a priority.
The governments should develop and encourage the development of general consumer education programmes.
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Your Rights as a
Telecom Consumer Basic Information on Telecom tariff/charges and rates related issues from Telecom Regulatory Authority of India that specifies your rights.
T
he customer must be given complete details of tariff plan including charges payable for every item included in the plan within a week of activation of service. While taking the new connection, you can obtain the contact details of the Call Centre, Nodal Officer and appellate authority of service provider for making your complaints. No hike in any tariff item or charges is permitted during six months from the date of enrolment of the subscriber in a tariff plan. In tariff plans having validity of more than six months including lifetime plans no tariff item or charges shall be increased at any time during the promised validity period. 'Lifetime validity' means the duration of the current license or renewed license of the service provider. The customer is free to move from one tariff plan to another, including post paid to pre paid and vice
versa without paying any fee or charges for migration and without change of telephone / mobile number.
in any tariff plan. If chargeable, it shall be optional for customers.
Customer consent a must for providing Even if the talk time value Chargeable Value Added has been exhausted, the Services prepaid customers should No chargeable value added get all the services, which service like ring tone, do not affect “talk time caller tune, missed call value�, like incoming alert, music / songs etc. calls/SMS etc. during the shall be provided to a entire validity period. customer without his/her Unused balance in the prepaid card at the end of the validity period is to be carried forward if recharged during the grace period specified for the purpose.
explicit consent. All communications/ advertisements relating to premium rate services e.g. ring tones, wallpaper, astrology, quiz etc. should have the pulse rate/charges for the service.
Call Center shall register the complaint / request and provide docket number to the complainant. In case the customer is not satisfied with the redressal of his complaint at the Call Center level, he may approach the Nodal Officer and then the appellate authority. For contact details of Call Centre, Nodal Officer and appellate authority, you may visit the Website of your service provider.
Complaints pertaining to service disruption / faults are to be attended within a maximum period of 3 Fixed line and broadband days and billing customers to be given rental rebate for faults not Whom to contact in case complaints within 4 weeks by telecom service rectified within 3 days of of telephone / mobile provider. In the event of a making complaint. complaints? request for termination, No rental for national All service requests/ roaming facility. Receiving complaints are to be made the services shall be terminated by telecom SMS is free while national to the Call Center. The roaming. Processing fee, if any, in the talk time top up recharge shall not exceed Rs.2/-. Calling Line Identification Presentation (CLIP) facility cannot be made a compulsory item of tariff
Do you know? Fixed line and broadband customers to be given rental rebate for faults not rectified within 3 days of making complaint.
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service provider within a maximum period of 7 days and bills to be raised after adjustment of security deposit.
Rs.5.35 per channel per month (excluding taxes). STB only required for getting pay channels.
STB to be made available How to stop getting for a deposit of Rs.200/unwanted with a monthly rental of telemarketing Calls and Rs.34/- or deposit of SMSs? Rs.750/- with a monthly A customer who does not rental of Rs.22/- to the wish to receive unwanted new customers. commercial calls or SMSs Your Multi System can register his telephone Operator (MSO) is number in the National required to maintain Do Not Call (NDNC) Customer Service Center Registry by dialing '1909' for receiving your or sending SMS by typing complaints. “START DND” and send it All complaints made will to 1909. be registered and given a In case the customer receives unsolicited call/SMS even after 45 days of registration in the NDNC registry, complaint can be lodged with the service provider within 15 days of receipt of such unsolicited commercial communication. Basic information about Cable TV Services in Conditional Access System (CAS) Areas CAS is only available in Chennai and parts of Delhi, Mumbai and Kolkata. All customers in CAS area will get 30 Free to Air channels without Set Top Box (STB) by paying Rs.82/- (excluding taxes) per month.
services, the customer may contact the Call Centers on toll free numbers of the service provider. Individual Consumer Complaints / Disputes Individual consumer complaints / disputes which are maintainable before Consumer Forum are not handled by TRAI. Customer has to seek redressal of the grievance with the service provider as per the regulations or can seek remedy in the
Consumer Forum Complaints alleging violation of the Authority's direction/ orders/regulations are handled in TRAI. TRAI invites all the stakeholders to visit its website: www.trai.gov.in for full details of the Regulations, Tariff Orders, and Directions issued by the Authority from time to time. (Issued in public interest by Telecom Regulatory Authority of India)
Continued from Page 9
docket number.
Common Charter of
Monthly bills with details to be given to the customer by the cable operator compulsorily.
Telecom Services 2005
TV services under Direct to Home (DTH) The DTH operator has to make schemes and offer Set Top Box (STB) on rental, hire-purchase basis and outright purchase basis. The customer has the freedom to choose from schemes being so offered. In case of termination of connection, the service provider has to give a notice to the customers.
CAS allows consumers choice of selecting individual pay channel.
A subscription package offered to a customer cannot be changed to the disadvantage of the customer for 6 months from the date of subscription.
No compulsion to take bundle of channels or bouquets.
STB not to be disabled in case there are no dues.
Pay channels will be available at the rate of
In case of any complaint or problem with the
All service providers agree to provide information on Directory Services and book complaints on toll free number for registering complaints. All service providers agree to provide their subscribers satisfactory connectivity to their services and interconnectivity to the extent of their respective legal obligation under the relevant interconnection agreement and to ensure that subscribers do not suffer on account of poor service. All service providers agree to allow emergency services like police, fire and ambulance for a period of 15 days during which incoming facility is allowed, if technically feasible, even after the telephone connection is suspended. All Service Providers agree to achieve the minimum benchmarks prescribed by TRAI with respect to the quality of service and also commit themselves to improve upon the standards of service at different points of time. Mutual courtesy and respect are the hallmarks of any durable relationship between the Service Providers and subscribers and both agree to abide by these principles. Though this charter is non-justiceable, service providers agree to strive to adhere all the points contained in this charter and to make every effort to abide by the charter. Clause 7 amended as agreed in the meeting of the CAGs and service providers held on 24th January 2006 so as to inform the subscribers through “each bill” instead of informing “periodically”.
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State of
Consumer Awareness
in Shimla City Dr. Mamta Mokta
Chairperson, Department of Public Administration, Himachal Pradesh University, Shimla.
“A customer is the most important visitor on our premises. He is not dependent on us. We are dependent on him. He is not an interruption in our work. He is the purpose of it. He is not an outsider in our business. He is a part of it. We are not doing him a favour by serving him. He is doing us a favour by giving us an opportunity to do so.� Mahatma Gandhi
T
he world is a global village and the consumer is king, yet he is striving to create a niche for himself. The growing interdependence of the world economy and international character of many business practices have contributed to the development of consumer protection (Gambhir ,2007) Citizens have always been exploited by agencies and institutions, both in private and public sectors, as they are not orgnanised formally to take remedial action. Such complaints are more in public utility services like electricity, water, gas, railways, and transport. (Goel 2004) The term consumer has been defined as any person who seeks or acquires goods for personal, family or household purpose.
Moreover, the goods must be acquired for final consumption and not for the purpose of manufacture or resale (Agarwal, 1989) Every individual irrespective of his age, sex, religion, status is a consumer and thus they are required to exercise proper check and caution while making purchase of item (Sharma 2005).A Consumer is anyone who buys or agrees to buy any goods for a consideration which has been paid or promised or partly paid and partly promised or under any system of deferred payment.
if he purchases goods for commercial or resale purpose (Rakesh 2000).The process of development coupled with increasing liberalization and globalization across the country has enabled consumers to realize their increasingly important role in society and governance( Aggarwal 2006).
Consumerism under Himachal Pradesh Consumer Protection Rules 1988 Himachal Pradesh State Consumer Disputes Redressal commission, District Consumer Dispute Redressal Forum were Consumer also includes established in 1989. any user of such goods According to provisions of other than the person these rules Himachal who actually buys goods Pradesh has established and such use is made with four District Consumer the approval of the Disputes Redressal purchaser. However a Forums at Shimla, Mandi, person is not a consumer Kangra and Una. The
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district forum Shimla has its jurisdiction over four Districts of Shimla, Solan, Sirmour & Kinnaur District. While Mandi district forum has its jurisdiction extended over Districts Mandi, Kullu and Lahual Spiti. District forum Kangra's jurisdiction extends over Kangra Chamba & District Forum Una's jurisdiction extends over District Una, Hamirpur and Bilaspur. The District Consumer Dispute Redressal Forum has jurisdiction to entertain the claim, where the value of the goods and services and compensation claimed does not exceed Rs.20 lacs the state consumer dispute redressal commission has jurisdiction to entertain the claims where the value of goods and services and
compensation exceeds Rs.20 lacs but does not exceed Rs.1 Crore. The complaint can be filed within a period of 2 years from the date, cause of action arose within the local limits of forum/ commission and the fee for making complaint is Rs.100/- for total value of goods or services and compensation claimed upto Rs. One lac, Rs. 200/above compensation of Rs. Two lacs to Rs. Five lacs, Rs.400/- is the fee- above Rs. Five lacs to Rs. Ten lacs compensation , Rs. 500 is the fee above Rs. Ten lacs to Rs. Twenty lacs. Fees of Rs. 2000/is levied above compensation of Rs. Twenty lacs to Rs. Fifty lacs. Rs. 4000 is fees above Rs. Fifty lacs and upto Rs. One crore and Rs. 5000/is the fee charges above Rs. One crore to be paid in the form of Crossed Demand Draft or Crossed Indian Postal order. (Administrative Report, 2006-07)
Extent of consumer awareness Data Analysis and Findings The awakening among consumer of their rights and duties, social and legal obligation of the business or government toward the consumer is called consumer awareness. It was found during a study conducted in Shimla city in 2009, that majority of consumer’s, that is 70.90% were aware of the malpractices and 29.06 %
were not aware of them. Only 45. 45 % had made complain about it to the concerned authorities. Consumers give different reasons for not complaining. Majority of respondents, that is 42.85% believed that problem is not so serious as to make a complaint. It was observed that consumers in Himachal Pradesh do not have the initiative to complain to the authorities concerned despite of the fact that they know malpractices are going on. 50.90% consumers respondents very often take cashreceipt after purchasing the goods. Thus majority of consumer in Himachal Pradesh had not fully comprehended the importance of cashreceipt. Without it, consumers, can not exercise their rights, as a consumer and seek redressal before the consumer court. Majority of the educated respondents have no knowledge about Consumers Protection Laws and 70.90% consumers respondents had no knowledge of Consumers Rights,It was observed, that majority of respondents i.e. 81.81% were unaware about World Consumer Rights Day 15th March. With regard to the most significant Act, Consumer Protection Act 1986 only 48.18% were aware of the existence of State Commission and 57.27% were aware about District
Forum. But only 20% had made complaint before District Forum and respondents had lodged complaint before State Consumer Commission. Awareness level of redressal procedure was 46.36 %. Those 23.07% respondents, which were not satisfied with the response of redressal machinery, have given reason that the procedure is very complex. Thus it can be concluded that much more is required to be done in the direction of consumerism to make consumers aware about their rights.
Suggestions To Strengthen The State Of Consumerism In Himachal Pradesh The consumers should always try to purchase standard goods of quality. Some quality marks have been patented by the government such as ISI, WOOL mark, AGG mark, FPO, these marks ensure the quality and minimize the complaints. If the goods being purchased are subject to guarantee or warranty, the consumer must insist the trader to give him signed guarantee/ warranty card. The consumers must ensure the date of manufacturing expiry date, maximum retail prices indicated on the packaged commodities. Remember MRP is not a government fixed price and the consumer can bargain. He must always
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know that no one can sell more than MRP. AGG mark for agriculture products, ISI mark for electrical appliances, BIS Hallmark for gold should always be checked at the time of purchase. Consumers should habituate themselves to check the malpractices in the market rather than remain passive. They should not hesitate to question shopkeepers, whenever they notice irregularities in their dealings, and if needed be, report to the appropriate authorities. The quality testing laboratories should be set-up in as many places in Himachal Pradesh as possible so that consumers have easy and free access to them. Consumers must be made to inculcate in themselves the habit of buying goods only after verifying the quality, purity, price, weight, packing, manufacturing date, expiry date etc. Consumers in Himachal Pradesh should prefer to take cash receipt and should always insist on it, because this small piece of paper is very important. Without it consumers will not be able to exercise their right as a consumer and seek redressal before the consumer court. As consumer education is very important factor which influences consumers to act wisely in the market, it should
be included in the syllabi in a phased manner from the high school level onwards. In order to involve more and more youth for the strengthening of consumer movement in Himachal Pradesh, it is suggested here that Consumer Clubs should be opened in all the schools of Himachal Pradesh and efforts should also be sincerely made to open theses clubs at colleges and university level.
maintain a close liaison with consumers.
motivate the consumers through the mass media.
In Himachal Pradesh, more people should be involved in consumer activities they should be motivated to unite themselves in consumer organisations.
CONCLUSION
It is necessary that the literature on the various acts especially Consumer Protection Act 1986, should be supplied to the consumers freely in order to widen their scope of understanding.
Consumers should be To strengthen the state motivated towards the of consumerism in realization of consumer's Himachal Pradesh some rights in the market Consumer Service Guiding environment. For this, Centers should be set-up the government which by all government has at its disposal all the departments as well as required resources should business houses to take the initiative and
We still have miles to move in the direction of consumer protection in Himachal Pradesh. But even longest journey starts with small steps so hope for better prospects of consumerism are expected in Himachal Pradesh in the near future.
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CONSUMERS POWER | May 2010 | 18
A Report on
Role of Consumer Disputes Redressal System in India
Issues, Challenges and Opportunities
Professor M.C. Paul, GAE, School of Social Sciences, Jawahar Lal Nehru University, New Delhi
N
ational seminar on “Role of Consumer Disputes Redressal System in India : Issues, Challenges and Opportunities” on 12-13th March 2010 by Professor M.C. Paul, GAE, School of Social Sciences of JNU, New Delhi in cooperation with Professor Bupinder Zutshi, CSRD. We are happy to note here that the Hon'ble Minister, Prof. K.V. Thomas, MOS, Consumer Affairs, consented to be the Chief Guest Since the topic of the seminar was very close to his heart but could not do so. As he said, “nevertheless, in view of some unavoidable, unforeseen, urgent and important Parliamentary commitment I was unable to avail the opportunity”. All the participants were thankful to the Hon'ble Minister for his “best wishes and compliments for the successful conduct of the seminar”. About 93 participants
attended the National seminar for two days from all over the country belonging to faculty and students from IIPA, Universities like Pondicherry, Delhi University, JNU University, Government of India, Judiciary, Senior Advocates, NGOs/ VCOs, Mass Media. They were Justice J.D. Kapoor, former President of Delhi state Consumer Commission, Hon'ble Justice R.K. Batta, Member NCDRC, Shri Anupam Dasgupta, Hon'ble Member, NCDRC, Mrs. Rajyalaxmi Rao, former member of NCDRC, Dr. P.K. Agrawal, former Principal Secretary, Department Consumer Affairs, Government of West Bengal, Sri Debasis Bagchi, former Inspector General of Police, Dr. Prem Lata, Member West District Fora, Mr. P.A. Krishnamoorthy (GTZ), Patrick Von Braunmuhl, GTZ (Germany), Dr. Satya Sharma (Malaysia), Prof.
Pranab Banerjee, Prof. Sheetal Kapoor, Prof. P. Moorthy, Prof. Meenu Agrawal, Advocate Rajeev Saxena, Advocate Apurva A. Dave, Prof. Savita Hanspal, Dr. S.K.Kejriwal, Dr. Ajay Kumar, Dr. O.P. Samy, Mr. Hitoshi Ota (Japan) Brig. Manaktala, Capt. Dasgupta, Col. Angad Singh, Col. Dua, Mr. Pankaj Singh, Advocate Biraja Mahapatra, Advocate Atulesh Kumar, Prof. Hari Dev Goyal, Prof. M.C. Paul et al including many students and faculty members and concerned Aam Consumers.
to take initiative as regards to the enactment of special Act to protect consumer rights from the free market activities. So this year is the Silver Jubilee year for issuance of the UN Guidelines and it is certainly an auspicious year for all of us gathered here to deliberate on the issues and challenges of consumer rights protection. In fact this National seminar is a humble attempt to pay a tribute to that spirit of the UN Guidelines. It is equally true that based on the UN guidelines, the Government of India had Welcoming the taken the right initiative participants Prof. M.C. in the Parliament and Paul, the Co-ordinator of the National Seminar, has enacted a landmark Act called The Consumer underlined the fact that this seminar is organized Rights Protection Act of as a mark of respect to the 1986. The basic purpose of this welfare Act is to true spirit of “UN exclusively protect the Guidelines for Consumer consumers from the Protection (UNGCP)” various types of market issued 25 years ago in exploitation. 1985. It was nonetheless He also expressed his a bold step that made some of the world leaders extreme happiness that he
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has received overwhelming response from all the participants gathered in this seminar which indicates nothing except the fact that the consumer rights issues are very close to every one's heart, particularly in this global era when marketers of all kinds of products and services are on the prowl alluring the gullible consumers in different ways, often without much respect for the consumer rights. Frankly speaking, he pointed out that the market exploitation is rampant and the unsuspecting consumers often fall trapped in the fine lines of deals offered by the marketers. This is particularly true for the people belonging to lower socioeconomic strata of our multi-lingual and multi-cultural society who are not even aware of consumer rights given in the Consumer Protection Act, and how to protect them. Even among the educated sections the awareness level is not high. This is pathetic when several dubious marketers do not have much regard for consumer rights unlike in the developed countries. Secondly, when the informed-consumers approach consumer fora for redressal of disputes as a last resort as per the Consumer Protection Act, they expect delivery of quick justice on merit because it is a critical component of consumer rights protection. But the
frustrating experiences the consumers undergo in the Fora do not augur well; this is in spite of many success stories in its credit. This is probably due to several inherent weaknesses. For example, in the absence of adequate knowledge and skills of consumer jurisprudence, many administrators of justice inappropriately dispense justice and thereby undermine the spirit of CP Act. If this is the story then something must be wrong somewhere and that's why the 3-tier Fora is not always in a position to serve its role effectively. The consumer fora has tremendous responsibilities to uphold the spirit of the Act. It becomes more frustrating when the consumer victims approach the justice delivery system with good spirit but fail to get appropriate justice. It is in this scenario that they suffer the double victimization syndrome: once in the market and, second in the hands of the fora. I strongly feel that consumer complainants have every right to get proper justice since they are also consumers of justice. When cases of consumer disputes are delayed and/or are not adjudicated properly on merit, it unfortunately makes them hesitant to approach the fora. This is not that some good things are not happening, but some good things have also gone wrong at many places. We know that the
3-tier Consumer Disputes Redressal system is supposed to take proconsumer approach and adjudicate the matter on merit. This seminar was organized to understand the various issues, challenges and opportunities of Consumer Disputes Redressal system in India; and how best we can find answers to some of these vexing questions so that the agonies of the consumer victims are minimized, if not eradicated. Prof. Paul said frankly that there are many questions that need collective thinking and wisdom to find answers as well as solutions to many such problems and challenges the consumers face day-in and day-out in market situations where the growing market violations are encountered. He also felt that many diverse issues and challenges demand fresh thinking and flexible approach, and for this there is a need for sincere debate and serious discussion by the participants. He also reminded that since 1991, with the market liberalization policy of the government, thousands of profithungry marketers including the dubious/ unscrupulous ones have been entering the market arena who hardly care even to recognize, forget about respecting the upobhokta adhikar (the
CONSUMERS POWER | May 2010 | 20
consumer rights). Therefore, under this circumstance, whether consumer is the 'King' or a Slave of the market is a BIG question. The unsuspecting and gullible consumers and particularly, those belonging to underprivileged and poorest sections of our society with low purchasing power are the worst victims of unbridled market injustice and exploitation. It seems our 'consumer rights are under siege'. The scenario gets uglier and pathetic when millions of our diverse consumers of our multilingual and multicultural nation are not even aware of Upobhokta Adhikar rightfully given by an Act of Parliament. The 'jago grahak jago' slogan incurring billions could hardly empower the consumers to save them from the continuous market injustice and exploitation. I believe we also need to forcefully make the 'Vyaparis also Jago' with a slogan like: 'Jago Vyapari Jago' to respect consumers' rights. Otherwise the business people will have the last laugh and go on doing 'business' as it is!! We also know millions of educated sections are not aware of their rights; how to protect; and where to go for redressal when their rights are violated in the market. Of course, for many people, ignorance becomes bliss. Some may
perceive it as a sheer fate when they get cheated, or a part of karmaphal (to pay a price for past misdeed). It is this perception that empowers the business class to proactively violate the law of the land. I don't have any panacea but I am sure in one thing that with our collective will and wisdom, we may at least come out with certain remedies to protect our rights as consumers against the dubious but powerful marketers. We require a new mindset and an out-of-box thinking and whenever necessary involving the civil society in a big way to check the menace of market injustice. We need to walk together as partners to change the present, to move to the future and reach out to the people who need it. I believe the challenges of consumer rights violations can be addressed only when we try to think differently together and voice our concerns to the authorities with constructive suggestions to appropriately amend the CPA, if required. Along with policies we also require honest efforts to implement these. Of course it is not a one way road. In other words, policy reform alone cannot be the only solution unless it is seen to work on the ground. Thereafter, the Keynote Address was delivered by Justice J.D. Kapoor, Former President, Delhi
State Consumer Commission. Justice Kapoor has been in the forefront of consumer rights protection; championing the cause of consumers, has delivered very enlightening and engrossing speech covering many issues and challenges faced by the Consumer Disputes Redressal system in India with the help of his practical judical experience over the years while solving umpteen number of cases, including the complex ones, and delivering with a zeal pro-consumer judgments by rightly interpreting the C.P. Act of 1986 to not only protected consumer rights but also strengthened them.
increasingly losing faith in quasi-judicial mechanism. He was also not happy with the way laws are being interpreted. He said before giving any judgment, each and every section of the law should be considered with elaborated meaning to effectively use for delivering judgment and thereby protect consumer rights. And every kind of injuries such as physical, mental, psychological etc. faced by the consumer should be accounted and compensated.
Prof. B.B. Bhattacharya, Vice-Chancellor of JNU, in his address as chairperson congratulated Prof. Paul and expressed happiness for holding the seminar at a crucial He began his address with juncture of India's neothe statement that “An liberal agenda-based enlightened Person is the business activities. He empowered person�. He showed his concern for said India was first and the difficulties of the foremost countries to consumers face in the enact such a market places. He comprehensive Act called highlighted how the Consumer Protection unscrupulous traders dayAct, 1986. He underlined in and day-out indulging that it was a good in malpractices causing endeavour to provide full tremendous harm to aam protection to the consumers. He also consumers. But he was expressed his not satisfied with the way unhappiness on the consumer courts are misleading advertisement functioning. Judicial of 'Jago Grahak Jago' process is getting complex which is not cutting much leading to harassment and ice. He also stated from suffering; the consumer several of his studies done victims don't feel as an expert in several encouraged to go to the committees as well as his court. Thousand and experience show that how thousands of cases are the benefit/relief in terms pending for the last 15 of Sales tax/Excise tax years and because of this relief supposed to be consumers are percolated down to the
CONSUMERS POWER | May 2010 | 21
end users extended by the government in the budgets for the consumers are often disregarded by the businessmen or the producers. All the tax benefits are rather taken away by the business people. He cited some such examples of life with pain how the companies amass huge wealth at the cost of consumers in India. Indian market economy is becoming more exploitative; no doubt under globalization they offer wider choices but do not always ensure what they propagate; and they show reluctance to protect consumer rights. He was also unhappy with the way the advertisement strategies are increasingly adopted which is actually misleading the consumers due to which many vulnerable consumers fall into their trap; and they throw many challenges to consumers in the market to protect their rights. It is here the role of consumer fora finds its centrality and is vital. But unfortunately the quasijudicial bodies like consumer fora are not in a position to expeditiously reduce the sufferings of consumers due to certain inherent weaknesses; and challenges of piling up of cases with the rising awareness level of the consumers. One of the challenges is delay in disposing of cases. It is a major challenge. Opening Mediation Cell with the help of qualified mediators can definitely be a way-out under the
present circumstances to help the aam consumers. We need to take this issue up for further deliberations and discourse. Nevertheless, he strongly felt that the consumer rights education and awareness movements is the need of the hour Prof. Bhattacharya suggested that there is a great role of NGOs, academicians, and civil society to generate awareness and knowledge by organizing awareness drive, undertaking interdisciplinary studies, by initiating academic course, organize seminars like this respectively so as to make the society and the people aware about the violations of
consumer rights and how to safeguard them. Last but not the least, the Vote of Thanks was extended by Dr. B. Zutshi. Thereafter the Technical sessions took off and were conducted by experts, academicians several legal experts including the Judicial officers from NCDRC who conducted Panel discussion on 13th March for the benefit of participants who had several questions to field to get answers from each one of them.
system. How the world's best Consumer Disputes Redressal system in our country is gradually becoming ineffective/ dysfunctional; and thereby losing aam consumers' confidence. All these lively discussions and discourses in a friendly atmosphere made them come out with some pragmatic
In fact, the seminar participants have discussed and debated host of issues related to consumer rights protection in India and the role of Consumer Disputes Redressal
With best Compliments
recommendations for the government as well as for the quasi-judicial bodies like Consumer fora, state commission, NCDRC, Central and State governments, if necessary, by amending the unique Consumer Protection Act, 1986, to attain its very object keeping its spirit intact.
Wishing all members of Citizens Awareness Group success in achieving objectives From. Smt. & Wg.Cdr. D. N. Misra, on the eve of their th 50 Marriage Anniversary
The
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Standards A Part of our Life
standards thermometers, B.P. apparatus or cardiographs. A driver anywhere in the world immediately recognizes the meaning of Renuka Salwan various dashboard symbols Dy. Director (PR) Bureau of Indian Standards, Chandigarh when buying a new car. We as consumers take standardization for veryone of us follow granted. Its absence some standards in however can send us into a our day-to-day life fit of fury. Who, for like office going, adhering instance, has not been to traffic signals etc. , the irritated by the seeming consequences are obvious, lack of standardization of if we violate them. In fact clothes sizes or frustrated standardization touches when the light bulb we every aspect of our life be it brought for our lamp does our daily life, our work not fit or the safety razor places, our movement or blade does not fit into the any other activity. It is the safety. foundation stone on which If safety, compatibility, our society is built. reliability and quality are Standardization is a clearly crucial factors for universal phenomenon and consumers, value for you observe it in nature all money is another gain, the the time. You see the consumers make from orderly movement of standards. In today's time planets, starts chance of of open economy, world seasons, seasonal growth wide standards create the of plants. The structure of condition for open trade flora, fauna and human which put manufacturers being is standardized. and the consumers in a Coming to the benefit of win-win situation. For the standards, imagine the manufacturers, the cost of ordeal in selecting a book seeking to satisfy different of your choice in case of national market needs is urgency from a library reduced and the customers which does not follow a benefits from competition standard practice, imagine among suppliers vying to the plight of a patient and meet his needs. doctors using non-
E
A standardized product is a sure passport to customer satisfaction. A standard product assures that it has been produced to comply with the requirement of relevant standards protection from exploitation and deception. The BIS is making concerted efforts to train and educate various officebearers of consumer associations about BIS activities. Awareness program are being organized through its regional and branch offices. Efforts are also being made to spread awareness about standardization and the BIS role among school children so as to bring about an understanding about the role of standardization during during their formative years. The BIS has all India network. Its consumer's affairs department is there to help consumers, in case they come across any BIS certified product which they deem to be substandard. The use of standard mark or its imitation is an offence under the BIS act, punishable with imprisonment extending up to on year and a fine of
CONSUMERS POWER | May 2010 | 23
up to Rs. 50,000/-. The BIS also has the power to search and seize, in case reasonable doubt exists, about any misuse of the standard mark. Consumers are advised to be careful about products carrying the label “conforming to ISI” or “Fitted with ISI element” as these marking are spurious and illegal and mislead the consumers. Consumers are advised to be wary of such misrepresentations and bring them to the Bureau's notice. As a quality conscious consumer you must try a wide range of standardized goods available in the market. Your feedback would help the BIS tighten the supervisory control over manufacturers and this, in turn , would help the industry concerned to become a trusted and respected enterprise for the common man, thereby making a vital contribution to the improvement of life. So, when you are out shopping next time, do not shop blind folded and be careful that you buy quality products. There might be a slight price difference but life after all is a matter of quality and safety..
An Introduction
TRAI Telecom Regulatory Authority of India Dr. Akshat Mehta Reader, Deptt. Public Adminstration Punjab University, Chandigarh
P
rior to the 1991-92 economic liberalization, telecommunication services in India were monopoly of the state sector. These services were opened to the private sector during postliberalization period. Since the entry of private sector, these have witnessed a phenomenal growth in terms of increase in number of services and service providers. The growing role of the private sector in the telecom sector has raised policy questions such as fair competition; prices; quality of services and social and spatial equity. Keeping this in view, the Telecommunication Policy, 1994 envisaged setting up of a regulatory authority. In 1997, the government of India set up the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI). The Telecom Regulatory
Authority of India (TRAI) was constituted in 1997 under “The Telecom Regulatory Authority Of India Act, 1997”, dated 28th March, 1997. The Act was further amended in the year 2000 by the promulgation of “The Telecom Regulatory Authority Of India (Amendment) Ordinance, 2000”, dated 24th January, 2000. The major aim of TRAI is to provide an effective regulatory framework, adequate safeguards to ensure fair competition and protection of consumer interests.
(iv) ensure the quality of service; (v) monitor the quality of service and conduct the periodical survey of such provided by the service providers; and (vi) ensure effective compliance of universal service obligations (Gazettes of India, 1997, 2000).
The TRAI comprises a full time Chairperson, not more than two whole time members and not more than two part-time members, to be appointed by the Central TRAI has been assigned a large number of functions, Government. Special knowledge of, and out of these the most professional experience in important functions telecommunication, include, to: industry, finance, (i) facilitate competition accountancy, law, and promote efficiency management or consumer in the operation of affairs constitutes the telecommunication qualifications for services so as to appointment as facilitate growth in Chairperson or members of such services; the Authority. The term of (ii) protect the interest of the Chairperson and other the consumers of members is for three years telecommunication or till they attain the age of service; 65, which ever is earlier. (iii)lay-down the standards For day-to-day work, the of quality of service to TRAI has full time employees also. be provided by the service providers; Since its inception, TRAI has been playing an
CONSUMERS POWER | May 2010 | 24
important role in facilitating competition, monitoring quality of service, regulating tariff, ensuring universal service obligation and involving various stakeholders. TRAI has issued several Orders, Directions and Regulations addressing the concerns of consumers including the Quality of Service standards. TRAI has institutionalized mechanism for registration for consumer organizations with it. TRAI interacts periodically with these consumer organizations or Consumer Advocacy Groups (CAGs). Citizens Awareness Group, Chandigarh is one amongst 41 such groups. Through mutual discussions between these consumer organizations and service providers, a Common Charter of Telecom Service was finalized, under the aegis of TRAI to be adopted by the service providers on a voluntary basis. There are lots of consumer complaints in the telecom sector. Absence of defined framework for functioning of the existing redressal mechanisms is leading to customer dissatisfaction. Recently, Telecom
Regulatory Authority of India has come out with Telecom Consumers Protection and Redressal of Grievances Regulation, 2007 (3 of 2007), dated 4th May 2007 which calls for the establishment of three tier redressal grievance mechanism, namely: (a) Call Centre, (b) Nodal Officer, (c) Appellate Authority. It is hoped that this mechanism would go a long way in ensuring consumer protection. It has been seen that TRAI has been making its utmost efforts in facilitating competition thereby promoting efficiency in the operation of the telecom sector, protecting the interest of the consumers, monitoring
the quality of services and ensuring effective compliance of the universal service obligations. However, TRAI suffers from many limitations; the important limitations include lack of adequate powers to execute its decisions; ineffective in ensuring quality of service as per the benchmarks in case of certain parameters of quality, such as, call completion rate, signal clarity and inter-cellular connectivity; and ineffectiveness in spreading of telecom services to the rural areas. It is suggested that TRAI may be provided more teeth as powerful TRAI can enforce the quality of service norms more effectively.
Disclaimer The publishers regret that they cannot accept liability for error omissions contained in this publications, however caused. The options and views contained in this publication, however are not necessarily those of the publishers. Readers are advised to seek specialist advice before acting or information contained in this publication, which is provided for general use and may not be appropriate for the readers’ particular circumstances. The ownership of trademark is acknowledged. No part of this publications or any part of the contents thereof may be reproduced, stored in retrieval system or transmitted in any form without the permission of the publishers in writing. An exemption is hereby granted for extracts used for the purpose of fair reviews.
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CONSUMERS POWER | May 2010 | 25
Child labour in India
STOP CHILD LABOUR
Dr. Babita Agrawal,
Associate Prof. & HOD Economics, A K P G College, Hapur, Ghaziabad, UP
Introduction
C
hild labour in India is a human right issue for the whole world. It is a serious and extensive problem, with many children under the age of fourteen working in carpet making factories, glass blowing units and making fireworks with bare little hands. According to the statistics given by Indian government there are 20 million child laborers in the country, while other agencies claim that it is 50 million. In Northern India the exploitation of little children for labour is an accepted practice and perceived by the local population as a necessity to alleviate poverty. Carpet weaving industries pay very low wages to child labourers and make them work for long hours in unhygienic conditions. Children working in such units are mainly migrant workers from Northern India, who are shunted here by their families to earn some money and send it to them. Their families dependence on their income, forces them to endure the onerous work conditions in the carpet factories. The situation of child laborers in India is desperate. Children work for eight hours at a stretch with only a small break for meals. The meals are also frugal and
the children are ill nourished. Most of the migrant children, who cannot go home, sleep at their work place, which is very bad for their health and development. Seventy five percent of Indian population still resides in rural areas and are very poor. Children in rural families who are ailing with poverty perceive their children as an income generating resource to supplement the family income. Parents sacrifice their children's education to the growing needs of their younger siblings in such families and view them as wage earners for the entire clan. The Indian government has tried to take some steps to alleviate the problem of child labor in recent years by invoking a law that makes the employment of children below 14 illegal, except in family owned enterprises. However this law is rarely adhered to due to practical difficulties. Factories usually find loopholes and circumvent the law by declaring that the child laborer is a distant family member. Also in villages there is no law implementing mechanism, and any punitive actions for commercial enterprises violating these laws is almost non existent. Child labor is a conspicuous problem in India. Its
Policies of child labour There are specific clauses in the draft of Indian constitution dated 26th January 1950, about the child labor policy in India. These are conveyed through different articles in the Fundamental rights and the Directive Principles of the State Policy. They lay down four specific policy rules regarding child labor. They are as following:1) Article 14) No child below the age of 14 years shall be employed to work in any factory or mine or engaged in any other hazardous employment. 2) Article 39-E) The state shall direct its policy towards securing that the health and strength of workers, men and women and the tender age of children are not abused and that they are not forced by economic necessity to enter vocations unsuited to there are and strength. 3) (Article 39-f ) Children shall be given opportunities and facilities to develop in a healthy manner and in conditions of freedom and dignity and that childhood and youth shall be protected against moral and material abandonment. 4) (Article 45 ) The state shall endeavor to provide within a period of ten years from the commencement of the constitution for free and compulsory education for all children until they complete the age of fourteen years. prevalence is evident in the child work participation rate, which is more than that of other developing countries. Poverty is the reason for child labor in India. The meager income of child labourers is also absorbed by their families. The paucity of organized banking in the rural areas creates a void in taking facilities, forcing poor families to push their
CONSUMERS POWER | May 2010 | 26
children in harsh labor, the harshest being bonded labor. Bonded labor traps the growing child in a hostage like condition for years. The importance of formal education is also not realized, as the child can be absorbed in economically beneficial activities at a young age. Moreover there is no access to proper education in the remote areas of rural India
for most people, which leaves the Hilden with no choice.
Causes of child labour Some common causes of child labor are poverty, parental illiteracy, social apathy, ignorance, lack of education and exposure, exploitation of cheap and unorganized labour. The family practice to inculcate traditional skills in children also pulls little ones inexorably in the trap of child labour, as they never get the opportunity to learn anything else. Adult unemployment and urbanization also causes child labour. Adults often find it difficult to find jobs because factory owners find it more beneficial to employ children at cheap rates. This exploitation is particularly visible in garment factories of urban areas. Adult exploitation of children is also seen in many places. Elders relax at home and live on the labour of poor helpless children. The industrial revolution has also had a negative effect by giving rise to circumstances which encourages child labour. Sometimes multinationals prefer to employ child workers in the developing countries. This is so because they can be recruited for less pay, more work can be extracted from them and there is no union problem with them. This attitude also makes it difficult for adults to find jobs in factories, forcing them to drive their little ones to work to keep the fire burning their homes. The incidence of child labour would diminish considerably even in the face of poverty, if there are no parties willing to exploits them. Strict implementation of child labor laws and practical and healthy alternatives to
replace this evil can go a long way to solve the problem of child labour. Children who are born out of wedlock, orphaned or abandoned are especially vulnerable to exploitation. They are forced to work for survival when there are no adults and relatives to support them. Livelihood considerations can also drive a child into the dirtiest forms of child labour like child prostitution and organized begging. It was also decided that both the Union government and the State government could legislate on matters concerning child labor. Various legislative initiatives were also taken in this regard at both the State and Union level. The main legislative measures at the national level are The Child Labour Prohibition and Regulation Act -1986 and The Factories Act -1948. The first act was categorical in prohibiting the employment of children below fourteen years of age, and identified 57 processes and 13 occupations which were considered dangerous to the health and lives of children. The details of these occupations and processes are listed in the schedule to the said Act. The factories act again prohibits the employment of children less than fourteen years of age. However an adolescent aged between 15 and 18 can be recruited for factory employment only after securing a fitness certificate from a medical doctor who is authorized. The Act proceeds to prescribe only four and and hour's work period per day for children between 14 and 18 years. Children are also not allowed to work in night shifts. Moreover, in the year 1996 the Supreme Court of India came out with a judgment in
court that directed the State and Union government to make a list of all children embroiled in hazardous occupations and processes. They were then told to pull them out of work and asked to provide them with proper education of quality. The judiciary also laid down that Child Labour and Welfare Fund is set up. The contribution for this was to be received from employers who contravened the Child Labor Act. India is also a signatory to the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child, ILO Abolition of Forced Convention – No 105 and ILO Forced labor Convention – No. 29. A National Labor Policy was also adopted in the year 1987 in accordance with India's development strategies and aims. The National Policy was designed to reinforce the directive principles of state policy in the Indian constitution. The above fact is beautifully expressed by Wordsworth in his famous lines “child is father of the man”. So it becomes imperative for the health of future of a community is in the well being of its children. The a nation to protect its children from premature labour which is hazardous to their mental, physical, educational and spiritual development needs. It is urgently required to save children from the murderous clutches of social injustice and educational deprivation, and ensure that they are given opportunities for healthy, normal and happy growth. The venerable Indian poet Rabindranth Tagore has said time and again, that every country is absolutely bound by its duty to provide free primary education to its children. It is important to remember that industrialization can afford
CONSUMERS POWER | May 2010 | 27
to wait but youth cannot be captured for long. It is imperative that the basic tenet made in article 24 of the Indian constitution prohibiting the employment of any child below fourteen years of age, in a factory, mine or any other hazardous employment be stopped – be adhered to. There should be no ambiguity in ensuring the right of every child to free basic education and the promise of the constitution should be fully implemented in the here and now. Projects related with human resource development, dedicated to the child welfare issues must be given top priority by the central and state governments to stop the menace of child labour. Child labour laws need to be strictly implemented at the central and state levels. Corruption and negligence in child labor offices and employee circles should be dealt with very strictly by the judiciary and the police force. The development needs of growing children can only be provided for, by stopping the onerous practice of child labour in organized and non organized sectors with utmost sincerity. This is the only way a nation can train its children to be wholesome future citizens, who are happy and prosperous. The provision of equal and proper opportunities for the educational needs of growing children in accordance with constitutional directives will go a long way in stopping the evil practice of child labor.
Conclusion Concerned about the future of its children India has implemented a country- wide ban recently, on children below fourteen working in the hospitality sector and as domestics. It is intended that those who are found to Continued on Page 28
The Consumer Panchayat Plight of the rural and urban poor in developing countries Mr. Bejon Misra, Consumer Expert & Founder Trustee, Consumer Online Foundation, New Delhi, INDIA
T
he Consumer movement in India traces its antecedents to the consumer organization registered in Chennai in the 1930's by a follower of Mahatma Gandhi. This was at the height of Gandhi's campaign for freedom from colonial rule. However, it was the enactment of the Consumer Protection Act in 1986 that provided the impetus for the consumer movement in India to flourish. The Consumer Protection Act 1986 of India is unique in that it brought within its ambit of protection a whole class of consumers previously not recognized by other consumer protection statutes. The 'self employed� who purchased goods and services for use in their own small trades (including for instance women doing household tailoring to earn an income, street hawkers selling cooked or uncooked food items, petty traders, etc.) were all included in the definition of ' consumer�. The Consumer Protection Act 1986 of India therefore explicitly called for protection of not only those who could afford to purchase goods and services in the marketplace but also consumers from rural India
who earn a meager living out of engaging in small trading activities. Workers in the unorganized sector are estimated to constitute 92 percent of the country's work force.
and other consumers in the rural areas. Indeed, all over the developing world, the interests of the rural and urban poor are largely ignored and they are not represented as a community of consumers. Their rights to basic needs such as food, health and education remain unattainable and unachievable and this in spite of the many development plans and programmes that target them as beneficiaries.
Coordination Council (CCC), a national coalition of more than 60 leading consumer organizations in India, it was recommended that the time had come for consumer organizations to take their movement to rural India. More than 1000 delegates representing various stakeholders including representatives of the developing countries and consumers International who attended the CCC convention, held on 30-31 July 2005 at Vigyan Bhavan in New Delhi, agreed to implement an action plan to
The India legislation expanded the traditional paradigm of consumer protection and paved the way for a paradigm shift. Indeed a revolution in the consumer movement was set in process. However, this new vision of consumer protection has remained in the statute books; because it has largely not been exercised and /or implemented by all stakeholders in India – namely the government, the consumer organizations and industry.
Child labour in India
The poor, the marginalized informal sector and the consumers in rural India who are the largest group of consumers in India (estimated at 700 millionstrong out of a billion1) today remain ignored and unprotected. This is also the case in China. The Law of the Peoples Republic of China on the Protection of Consumer Rights and Interests 1993 includes peasants within its ambit. Yet, the state has largely ignored the plight of farmers
violate the law will be fined with 430 dollars and sent into rigorous imprisonment for two years. Children in India are not allowed to work in mines, factories and other hazardous jobs already. Two more professions have been added in a list of fifty seven occupations which were considered hazardous for a child's development needs in the 'child labor act' passed in 1986. Childs rights activists are waxing eloquent in high pitched voices about the absolute importance of stopping child labor. But legislation in this regard is just like an intention. It is more important to take development measures to ensure its practical application by eliminating the reasons of child labor from our society. The reasons giving birth to child labor are poverty, illiteracy, scarcity of schools, ignorance, socially regressive practices, blind customs and traditions, migration and last but not the least corruption amongst employees and government labor organizations. People should not be able to get away with
At the 4th National Convention of the Consumer
Continued from Page 27
CONSUMERS POWER | May 2010 | 28
undertake this mammoth task (available on www.core.nic.in). It was agreed that this needs to be undertaken by the consumer organizations around the world in coming years. On 23rd August 2005 in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia the members of Consumers International from the Asia Pacific region, while deliberating on the role of the consumer movement in the implementation of the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) collectively declared that the consumer movement should become “Pro-Poor, Pro-Rural & ProWomen” in the coming years and to target their activities towards enabling the fulfillment of the 8 MDGs by 2015. (see www.ciroap.org/mdg for more information on the conference outcomes). Keeping in view a threepronged approach to work on health, food and education to empower the consumers and bridge the gap between the rural and urban consumers,
it has been decided by the leaders working in the consumers of rural India to national, regional and organize a three days international consumer International Convention at a movement to witness village location in the State of firsthand the plight of the Uttar Pradesh in India from poor and to listen to the 27th to 29th September voices of the poor 2010. To know more about consumer; the convention, please visit 3. To share information and www.consumerpanchayat.org educate the delegates or www.bejonmisra.com participating at the rural convention on the three Objectives of the main issues confronting Convention: rural consumers i.e. food, health and education in 1. To develop a blueprint for the context of the 8 developing countries in consumer rights and their Asia Pacific on how to link to the Millennium build a strong and Development Goals effective consumer (MDGs) movement to tackle food, health and education The UN Guidelines for issues confronting poor Consumer Protection adopted consumers living in rural by the UN General Assembly and urban slums and to in 1985, and expanded in take into account the 1999 has hitherto provided gender dimension in their the basic framework for the work in order to consumer movement and contribute towards the governments to organize fulfillment of the MDGS their work. While this will on food, health and still from the basic agenda, education. the current initiative of the 2. To provide the real-time environment of a village in rural India to the
consumer organizations in India will in addition call on
the consumer movement to adopt the MDG targets as a direction to which the consumer movement and governments in the region will be heading to alleviate the suffering of the millions of consumers who are unable to consume and claim their basic needs. The event, planned by Consumer Online Foundation along with all the stakeholders working in the interest of the consumers will provide a platform to take into account the interests and needs of consumers in developing countries around the world. It will focus on the special problems faced by poor, rural and women consumers and seek to address the imbalances in economic terms, educational levels, and bargaining power these groups of consumers face. It will emphasize their right of access to basic needs, as well as the right to just, equitable and sustainable economic and social development.
Be Visible Be Wise Citizen Awareness Group is registered with TRAI and Consumers Advocacy Group, since June 2009 and is a registered a NGO under the society Act sicne December 1994 as a part of its endeavor to generate about the rights of consumer it organises workshops in Northern region from time-to-time. Now it has started bi-monthly magazine, ‘Consumers Power’ which goes toa large number of consumers and service providers. The magazine is the right media to reach out to the Consumers community at a most cost effective manner. As a regular advertiser you can avail of a special discounted rates too.
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Consumer Awareness Rights & Responsibilities
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iberalisation is paving way for a marketdriven economy, where the manufacturers seek to maximise profits. Manufacturers are not often concerned about the quality of goods and services and their impact on the health of people and the environment. Instead of the consumer guiding the producer about what should be produced, it is the producer who decides what the consumer should want. The plight of a consumer is further worsened by the use of advertising techniques. Consumers are saddled with the problem of choosing between too many products with too less information. With the concentration of market in the hands of a few large corporations, it becomes important that the consumers are aware of their rights in order to ensure proper standards for the goods and services for which they make payment. There are many goods which are sold in the market without much information about their quality, quantity and purity. In case of goods meant for mass consumption like, food, milk products, edible oil etc. the ingredients are not known. Manufacturers or producers seldom follow the safety regulations in the products like, lamps, batteries,
footwear, electrical equipments, wires, cement, LPG cylinders, stoves, switches, plugs, sockets etc. leading to many fatal accidents. Adulteration of food is another major problem. Milk can contain detergent, refined oil, caustic soda or urea. Mustard oil can be adulterated with argemone oil and arhar dal with yellow colour. Vegetables and fruits are artificially coloured. Indiscriminate use of pesticides by farmers and untreated effluents by industries, have led to the problem of food contamination by pesticide residues and toxic heavy metals.
formed consumer groups to work on the malpractices in ration shops and overcrowding in the road passenger transport. The eighties witnessed an upsurge in the number of consumer groups.
The battle for consumer protection has to be fought by many agencies. The Government has to play an important role, by enacting suitable laws and enforcing them effectively. India has been observing 15th March since 1989 as the National Consumers' Day. This day has a historic importance as it was on this day in 1962, that the Bill for Consumer Rights was moved in the US Congress. Steps have been Although in Kautilya's taken by the Government of Arthashastra, strict rules India by way of enactment of were set for the trade and various Acts and other industry and punishments measures to help consumers. for exploitation were prescribed. But, there was no Indian Penal Code, Standards of Weights and Measures Act, organised and systematic Motor Vehicle Act, are some movement safeguarding the interests of the consumers in of the Acts. Despite these Acts, the fact remains that India. Rampant food very little could be achieved shortages, hoarding, black in the field of consumer marketing, adulteration of food and edible oil gave birth protection. A major breakthrough came during to the consumer movement 1986 when Parliament in an organised form in the passed a law for Consumer sixties. Consumers started Protection Act -1986. Threevoicing their concerns and tier quasi-judicial machinery demanding better products at the district, state and and services. Till mid national levels was set up seventies, consumer with a view to provide speedy organisations were largely and simple redressal to engaged in writing articles and holding exhibitions. They consumer disputes. The
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District Forum deals with the cases involving claims upto Rs. 20 lakhs, the State Commission between Rs.20 lakhs to one crore and the National Commission deals with the cases involving claims exceeding Rs. one crore. The objective of the consumer courts is to ensure speedy justice to the consumers against various malpractices and negligence without involving any cost, as no court fees is charged. Consumer courts have been set up as special courts, as it was expensive and time consuming to get justice through civil courts. The Consumer Protection Act, which has been defined as “the Magna Carta of Consumers�, spells out six consumer rights: Right to Safety, Right to Information, Right to Choice, Right to Representation, Right to Redress, and Right to Consumer Education. India has the biggest consumer movement today due to the efforts of consumer organisations and the establishment of consumer courts. India is the only country in the world which has exclusive courts for consumer redressal. This has been internationally praised including the developed countries. The Consumer Protection Act (COPRA) has succeeded in bringing about fair play in the supply of
goods and services to a large professional personnel, extent. The Act applies to requires time for filing the almost all goods and services. case and attending the court proceeding and certain other formalities like producing the Still, the present scenario is bill, warranty cards etc. not very encouraging. These procedures need to be Unfortunately the consumer courts have become replica of made simpler and quicker for legal courts, as the procedure making the process more meaningful and realistic. is no longer simple and quick. The consumer redressal process is relatively Consumers have the social responsibility of exposing the cumbersome and more manufacture/supplier or the expensive and timeconsuming than desired. The service provider for resorting to illegal trade practices. process involves engaging a
Unethical notings like “Goods once sold will never be taken back” are in sharp contrast to the practice in some of the developed countries, where the sellers declare, “In case you are not fully satisfied with our product, you can bring the same to us within a month for either replacement or return of your money.” This is the result of consumer consciousness. Consumers have to realize their role and importance. The consumer movements can be winner
movements only with our active involvement by knowing our rights and enforcing them. It requires a voluntary effort involving the participation of one and all. If the consumers remain passive, they will continue to be exploited. It is necessary that consumers take action with solidarity to get a fair deal and timely redressal. An alert consumer is a safe consumer!
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Academician
Activities Citizen’s Awareness Group has been on the forefront of reaching out to the consumer’s and empower them through various activities.
Shri Surinder Verma, Chairman of Citizens Awareness Group giving talk on the consumers rights at NSS Camp in the Govt. Business College, Sector 42 Chandigarh on 12 December 2009.
Republic Day Celebrate on 25 January 2010 with children
Shri Surinder Verma, Chairman of Citizens Awareness Group giving talk on the precautions that should be taken by investors while dealing with the security market in the seminar of the Consumer Association Chandigarh and Chandigarh Administration at the ICSSR Complex PU, Chandigarh on28 December 2009.
Save Girl Child Seminar organised by Citizen Awareness Group
Citizens Awareness Group and Sewa Sanskar Foundation organised a function for the distribution of sweaters and socks to out of school children of Alternative Innovative Education (AIE) centres in Govt. Model Senior Secondary School, Sector 10, Chandigarh.
Seminar on “Be Financially Literate: Save Your Investments” organised by Citizens Awareness Group in Association with Telecom Regulatory Authority of India, New Delhi at the office of UGCE, Chandigarh on 12 January 2010.
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International Womens Day Celebration on 8th March 2010
Why deal with unauthorized operators ? Buy or sell shares only through brokers registered with Stock Exchanges. Here are some Do's of stock investments: 1. Always insist on contract notes from your broker. Verify their genuineness on the on the Exchange website. 2. Before you place stock orders with your broker, check the company's, redentials, recent announcements and disclosures under various regulations. Accurate sources are Exchange and company websites, business magazines. Don't's: 1. Don't keep your Demat Transaction slip book with any broker/sub-broker. 2. Don't get carried away by the onslaught of advertisements about the financial performance of companies in print and electronic media.