The effective rule of demand and supply is instrumental in determining the economy of any country. Demands usually emanate from the customer’s end. A ‘customer’ is termed as a ‘consumer’ when he is the end-user of the product or service purchased. Consumers play a fundamental role in boosting the economy of the country. The higher the purchasing power of the consumer the better the demand, resulting in profitable businesses. Summarily, a consumer is undeniably the most desired and imperative string of a successful business. In other words, a business exists because of the consumer; in the absence of demands emanating from consumers the collapse of a business is inevitable.
So theoretically, we have established that the consumer is the KING!! But before you start believing that......try recalling the instances when you actually have been treated like one. Very few of us can really recollect such experiences; in fact most of the times we are left with a sour taste when it comes to exercising our rights for consumer protection. Despite all the hype about consumerism, consumer still is the most vulnerable and cheated party in any trade. The consumer is swindled in many ways; by being overcharged, misled through advertisements, victimized by false claims, and subjected to black marketing. These are some of the common practices for greedy sellers to make undue profit at the consumer’s expense. Once a good is sold, the grievances of poor consumers often go unheard. Mostly we, as consumers, have an easy-going attitude of ignoring such falsifications on the manufacturer’s part. If only a few of us cared to stand up and make an effort to claim what duly is our right, the greed of the corporate organizations can be curtailed. Often, we as customers find ourselves in an agreement drawn between the two parties that is mostly seller-centric. Once again, as buyers, we are left wondering where to turn to expect a fair deal.
Bearing with the above, the Indian Government has taken certain steps to ensure consumer protection from unfair trade practices in the country, the most salient of these steps being the introduction of legislation in the form of Consumer Protection Act, 1986. This act was tabled in 1986 in Rajya Sabha and thereafter approved by the President of India. Consumer Protection Act, 1986 empowers certain bodies at the district, state and central level to act as unbiased mediators, providing neutral premises for consumer grievance redressal. These bodies are commonly referred to as district consumer forums, consumer courts or consumer disputes redressal commissions.
Today, 23 years after its inception, the underlying sub-clauses of the Consumer Protection Act are finally gaining popularity. The ‘Buyer Beware’ cliché is rapidly becoming a thing of the past. As a customer you are entitled to have full explicit knowledge of the product or service you are buying. Therefore, any information purposely concealed or disclosed wrongly by the seller is a prohibited act that may lead to sustainable legal liabilities for any damages caused. As a customer you should be aware of these rights provided by the law in your interest. Apart from government bodies, we also have a few websites who have been phenomenal in addressing consumer protection related issues. One such popular and first of its kind website is consumerdaddy.com. It particularly invites the consumers to put forward reviews, complaints, criticisms, grievances or praises regarding products or services used by them. This portal also offers you the latest consumer reports for over 50000 products in the Indian market, thus enabling you to make the right buying decisions.
