The Parliament has given its nod to the landmark Consumer Protection Bill, 2019, which aims to protect the rights of consumers by establishing authorities for timely and effective administration and settlement of consumers’ dispute. The Bill, already passed by Lok Sabha, was passed in the Upper House by voice vote and will replace the more than three decades old Consumer Protection Act, 1986.
Moving the Bill for consideration and passing in Rajya Sabha, Union Food and Consumer Affairs Minister Ram Vilas Paswan has said that the new legislation seeks to establish a Central Consumer Protection Authority (CCPA) to promote, protect and enforce consumer rights. He also noted that this new bill will provide a better mechanism to dispose consumer complaints in a speedy manner and will help in disposal of large number of pending cases in consumer courts across the nation. He also said that if a product is found faulty, instead of earlier individual examination, the entire batch would be examined. He added that the new bill seeks to take care of product liabilities and service, as well as action against publishers and celebrities of misleading advertisements.
Talking on maximum retail price (MRP), Paswan said many restaurants were overcharging but when it tried to intervene, the matter was challenged in court. He said MRP should be displayed prominently on products apart from date of expiry, date of manufacturing and complaints redressal mechanism. He observed that there is no concept of levying a service charge globally and the government advised restaurants to make it voluntary. He also urged the state governments to pay more attention to consumer awareness programmes like 'Jaago Graahak Jaago'.