Union Minister of Consumer Affairs, Pralhad Joshi, led the celebrations of National Consumer Day 2024 today at Vigyan Bhawan in New Delhi. The event focused on strengthening consumer rights and enhancing grievance redressal mechanisms, with this year’s theme being “Virtual Hearings & Digital Access to Consumer Justice.”
In his address, Joshi highlighted the significance of virtual hearings in providing consumers with digital access to justice. He emphasized the government’s efforts to ensure accessible and efficient justice, aligning with Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s vision. The Minister also praised the Central Consumer Protection Authority (CCPA) for its efforts, including securing refunds of Rs 1,454 crore for consumers affected by COVID-19 flight cancellations and delisting misleading products on major e-commerce platforms like Amazon and Flipkart.
The Minister launched several tools to further consumer protection, including the Jago Grahak Jago App, Jagriti App and Jagriti Dashboard, designed to identify and combat dark patterns in e-commerce. He also introduced the National Legal Metrology e-Mapp, aimed at enhancing transparency and governance.
Joshi also unveiled the revamped National Consumer Helpline Portal (NCH 2.0), which includes AI-powered chatbots and multilingual support to improve grievance resolution. Additionally, the Organic Food Testing Laboratory in Guwahati and the Low Voltage Switch Gear Testing Facility in Mumbai were inaugurated to ensure food safety and electrical product quality.
The Minister highlighted India’s growing e-commerce sector, with over 950 million users, and praised the Consumer Protection E-commerce Rules, 2020, aimed at safeguarding consumers in online marketplaces. He also lauded the Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS) for issuing Quality Control Orders (QCOs) and for its hallmarking of gold jewelry.
Joshi handed over standard weights to Legal Metrology controllers from four states and launched the SMART Standards initiative by BIS, which will begin in 2025.
Nidhi Khare, Secretary of the Department of Consumer Affairs, commended the successful implementation of the Consumer Protection Act 2019 and the use of the E-Daakhil portal for faster case filing and resolution.