(CONSUMER ® sea Rl] GHTS ES Ding Repeaa) | jisWHO IS A CONSUMER DUTIES OF CONSUMERS ‘HOW CONSUMERS ARE EXPLOITED FACTORS CAUSING EXPLOITATION OF CONSUMERS __ CONSUMER MOVEMENT NEED OF CONSUMER MOVEMENT NAO MANOA TM NEI AY ‘CONSUMER PROTECTION ACT, 1986 IMPORTANT DAYS RIGHT TO BE HEARD RIGHT TO INFORMATION RIGHT TO CHOOSE RIGHT TO SAF bi RIGHT TO SEEK REDRESSAL RIGHT TO.CONSUMER EDUCATION MORE TO KNOW WHERE SHOULD CONSUMER GO TO GET JUSTICEWHO IS A CONSUMER ¢ Apperson who has indicated his or her j fae willingness to obtain goods and/or services from a. supplier with the intention of paying ¢ Someone who has purchased goods “a2 Sos beeen ¢ Aperson or group of people, suchas 6 lm ' a household, who are the final users of products or services. The consumer's use is final in the sense that the product is usually not improved by the use.VULIFS UEP Buying cise a reasonable price. To check the weights and measures before making purchases Reading the label carefully. 1! To procure the bill, cash received warranty, etc. 1! Shopping carefully and wisely | Understanding the terms of the sale 1) Reading and following instructions eects « Soe |, eeHOW CONSUMERS ARE EXPLOITED Due to the expanstow of business activities im an economy, we have a variety of goods available in the market, The demand for goods ana services is influenced by the advertisements iw televistow, newspaper and magazines. The | companies spend a considerable amount on a advertisements alone attract consumers and feed twformation that they want us to Rnow, but wot the information that we as consumers want. When we, aS consumer, do wot have sufficient information about the products, we normally get exploited and are sometimes even harassed by business community,~~ ae | ee ne being sold in the market a are e sometimes not measured or weighed correctly sSub-standard Quality : The goods sold are sometimes of sub-standard quality. Selling of medicine beyond their expiry dates is generally the grievances of consumers. gHigh Prices : Very often the traders charge a higher price than the prescribed retail price sDuplicate Articles : In the name of genuine parts or goods, fake or duplicate items are being sold to the consumers. gArtificial Scarcity : In order to amass illegitimate profit, businessman create artificial scarcity by hoarding, They sell it later at a higher price. §False or Incomplete Information : Sellers easily mislead consumers by giving wrong information about the product, its price, quality, reliability, life cycle, i el TT ae RRFACTORS CAUSING EXPLOITATION OF CONSUMERS Limited Information : Ina capitalist economy, producers and sellers are free to produce any goods or services in any quantity and there is no regulation on the prices, In the absence of information about different aspects of the products, namely, price, quality, condition of use, etc., the consumers are liable to make a wrong choice and lose money. Limited Supplies : The consumers are exploited when the goods and services are not available in the required quantity or numbers. This gives us rise to hoarding and price-escalation. Limited Competition : When only one producer or group of producer or a group of persons controls the production and supply of a product, and is in a position to restrict the availability of supplies, there is a possibility of manipulation in prices and availability. Illiteracy : Illiteracy is one of the major drawbacks that lead to the exploitation of consumers. The level of literacy directlyConsumer movemtmnty arose out of the following: Dusatisfactiow of the conmunery ay many unfair practices were being indulged tw by the sellers: t There war no legal system avorlable for consumery to protect thew frow exploitation wethe market place. inspiring a Consumer movement | onNEED OF CONSUMER MOVEMENT ge ee + Providing consumer. education. Providing consumer protection. Building pressure on government . Arranging consumer protection programmes. + Organizing public opinion. + Providing guidance to consumer. Fight against marketing system Consumer awarenessCONSUMER MOVEMENT IN INDIA 9 fook many years, for organisations in India and around the world, fo create awareness am fe, In India, the consumer movement as a social force originated with the necessity of protecting and promoting the interests of consumers against unethical and unfair trade practices, Rampat, ‘shortages, hordling, black marketing, adulteration of food and edible oil gave birth to the consumer movement inan organised | ‘form in the 1g60s, Till the 1970s, consumer organisations were largely engaged in writing articles and | holding exhibitions, formed consumer groups fo look into malpractices in ration shops and overcrows hing in the road passeneger transport. More recently. India witnessed an upsurge in the number of consumer groups. Because of all these efforts, the movement succeeded in aringi pressure on business firms.as wellas r gouernment to correct business conduct slack may be unfair and against the interest s of consumers at large. A major step taken in 1986 by the Indian government was the enactment of the Consumer Protection Act G86, popularly known as COPRA.CONSUMER PROTECTION ACT, 1986 Cortaner Protection Alot, 1986, pepalerty kaown as COPKA, i ax Hot of the Partianent of tedia enacted ic 1986 G2 protect intercate of centamece it Ueda. 1t wakes provision far the ectablickiceat of consumer ooexcile and ather aathoritios for the se ttlemeat of contumere dipates and for matters connected thereaitth, Thie Ast was eneated te 1986 with the objeative of providng better protection of concaners interest. Fffeotioe safepaarde are provited to the ooxsamer, apainst various types of explertatione ard anfain dealings, relying wairky on compencatory rather thar a diveiplnany om preventive approash arden the ot. Mt apples te all goode and services uitese specifically exempted, whioh covert the private, pable and cagpemative sectare, Ue abe provides speedy and iecxpeasioe. The rights adem the Hot flow from the righte exchrived in Airtiolee 14 to 19 of the Canstitation of dia, The Right to taformation Act (RT), whisk has wpexed sp poreraaxce procecsee of oar coantng to the commen pabl, alo bas far-reaching inpheations for consumer protection, The Consuner Pratection Flot, 7986 re the explaitatione ard axfair dealings, relginp on maiely compeasetory rather thar a paritive or prevention gpprowsh, The Aat has vet ap 2 three-tier guar jalieral consumer digpetes redressal machinery at the National, State ard Distrist levels, for expeditious ard inexpensive cottlement of carcaner digpatec,IMPORTANT DAYS \ nee a CONUMER RIGHT DAY - National Consumery ight Day was observed across India on 24 December Coe The day iy being observed ov 24 December, since | the Consumer Protection Act, 1986 was enacted ow this day iw1986. | WORLD CONSUMER RIGHT DAY - Every year 15tivMarch| is observed. ax "World Consumer Righty Day’. It | commemorate a historic declavatiow (1962) by former os % US President Joh F. Kennedy of four basic consumer rights, World Consumer Righty Day trary annual j W occasion for celebration and solidarity withiw the: | international consumer movement, Participanty observe, Ee cage baci ot a eararnees * demanding that these righty are respected andPita ced La (tote) uu eel CONSUMER 3 0cTe we) Right to Era rey tes ec) choose Te Reta ag }RIGHT TO BE HEARD Kight to be heard neare that consumer interests will receive dae consideration at gpprapriate forums, tt abeo trolades night ta be represented iy various forane formed to consiter the consanoré — The consumers should form xor-The conten has the aught ta be tnfarmedlctout the quality, "quantitipsptanay, placily, otanad ORE ES product or aertice before making a choice ov 4 compensation ov replacement if the: product prover ‘ fo be defective in any manner. Shie enables. the | consumer to act wisely and ceoponsibly and also | enable him to deaist from falling prey to high j\ Prasat calle Fock inise,RIGHT TO CHOOSE The consumer has right to be assured, wherever possible of access to variety of goods and services at competitive price. In case of monopolies, it means right to be assured of satisfactory quality and service at a fair price. It also includes right to basic goods and services. This is because unrestricted right of the minority to choose can mean a denial for the majority of its fair share. This right can be better exercised in a competitive market where a variety of goods are available at competitive prices. Any consumer who recieves a service in whatever capacity, regardless of age, gender Ze and nature of service, has the right to choose whether to continue to recieve the service. ( 5RIGHT TO SAFTEY ‘The conumers have the night to be protected against SAFETY the marketing of goods and services, which are i=—s hazardous to life and property. Producers need to THE SAFE WAY IS strictly follow the required safety rules and THE BEST WAY regulations. There are many goods and services that ‘we puchase that require special attention to safety. For example, pressure cookers have a safety valve whih,, if it is defective, can cause a serious accident. e manufacturers of the safety valve have to ensure | high quality. The purchased goods and services availed of should not only meet their immediate needs, but also fulfill long term interests. Before "purchasing, consumers should insist on the quality of | the products as well as on the guarantee of the products and services, They should preferably purchase quality marked products suck as ISI, Be AGMARK, etc.RIGHT TO SEEK REDRESSAL Consumers have the right to seek redressal against unfair trade prac tices or unscrup lous exploitation. It alto includes right to fair bettlement of the 2 genuine grievances of the consumer. Consumers must make complaint for = th cir genuine grievances, Many a times their Ae complaint may be of small voll butits impact on the Society as a whole may be very: large. They can 2 take the help of consumer jorganiza tions in seeking redressal of their igrievances, A consumer can claim compensation jor damage caused | by any product or service, He/She can file.a case in the consumer court against the shopkeeper or manufacturer, = =RIGHT TO CONSUMER EDUCATION The right to acquire the knowledge and skill to be an ‘informed consumer throughout life- Ignorance of consumers, ‘particularly of rural consumers, is mainly responsible for their exploitation: They should know their rights and must exercise hem- The government or other ‘organisation should make attempts to educate citizens i 5 about various aspects of onsumer welfare-Only then real ‘consumer protection can be achieved with success:WHY CONSUMER EDUCATION IS IMPORTANT It provides the person with the basic knowledge to handle consumer problem, he/she becomes a discriminating buyer by taking rational decisions, and thus not fall prey to advertisements or persuasions. Technological developments have flooded the market with a variety of products, goods and services, it is therefore important that a person possesses basic knowledge and skills to judge the product. School children are mostly dependent on their parents, it is therefore important that they make the best use of their pocket money. | Consumers education can alert the pupils to the corporate dumping of dangerous pharmaceuticals and similar products. s DEMAND YOUR RIGHTS! ! ' : Know Your CONSUMER RIGHTSMORE TO KNOW While buying many commodities, on the cover you ight have seen a logo with the letters ISI, Agmark, Hallmark. These logos and certifications help consumers om assured of quality while purchasing he goods and services. The organisations that monitor and issue these certificates allow produces to use their logos provided APPROVED BY :WHERE SHOULD CONSUMER GO TO GET, JUSTICE Condumers Rave the right to seck cedeessal against unfair trade practices and exploitation in the consumer court. Sf any damage is done te a consumer, he Ba. a EE The consumer motement in Sadia has fd to the formation of rarious organization focally knovin as consumers foum ov consumers: protection council, they quide Conaumero on hort to file cases in the consumer court, on. many occasions they alec coprenent indisidual consumer in the consumer court.Under COPRA a three- tier system is set upiat the district, state and National level for redressal of consumer disputes. Various claims are delt with by these courts as given below : ¢ District level: Up to Rs 20 Lakhs. ¢ State level : Between Rs 20 Lakhs and Rs 1 Crore. € National level : Exceeding Rs 1 Crore Tf a case is dismissed in district level court, the consumer can appeal in the state and then in the National level court.THANK YOU