Parliament Question: Consumer Protection and Expeditious Grievance Redressal through Digital Justice

Government of India Ministry of Consumer Affairs, Food and Public Distribution Department of Consumer Affairs LOK SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO.3184 TO BE ANSWERED ON 11.03.2026 CONSUMER PROTECTION AND EXPEDITIOUS GRIEVANCE REDRESSAL THROUGH DIGITAL JUSTICE

3184. SHRI GANESH SINGH:

Will the Minister of CONSUMER AFFAIRS, FOOD AND PUBLIC

DISTRIBUTION be pleased to state:

(a) whether digital reforms such as e-Daakhil, e-Jagriti, video conferencing, and the AI-enabled National Consumer Helpline (NCH) have led to measurable improvements in case disposal and if so, the extent of reduction in pending cases;

(b) whether it is a fact that in 2025, more than 1.4 lakh cases were disposed of, over 90,000 virtual hearings were conducted and refunds amounting to 42.6 crore were facilitated;

(c) if so, whether the Government is preparing a roadmap to further strengthen these digital systems up to the district and block levels;

(d) if so, whether the Government proposes to further expand collaboration with Central Consumer Protection Authority (CCPA), Bureau of India Study (BIS), Legal Metrology and private/academic institutions to effectively regulate misleading advertisements, dark patterns and unfair trade practices in digital markets; and

(e) if so, the details thereof? ANSWER THE MINISTER OF STATE CONSUMER AFFAIRS, FOOD AND PUBLIC DISTRIBUTION (SHRI B.L. VERMA)

(a) to (c) : The e-Daakhil portal, launched in 2020, facilitated online filing, fee payment and case monitoring. Further, to modernize the existing applications with the latest technologies, the Department has launched “e-Jagriti” portal on 1st January, 2025, which aims to enhance consumer grievance redressal through a micro-service architecture, Artificial Intelligence / Machine Learning integration and modern features like faceless onboarding and role-based dashboards. It unifies existing applications (OCMS, e- Daakhil, NCDRC CMS, CONFONET) into a single, scalable platform, allowing users to file complaints seamlessly from anywhere with multilingual support. The portal is designed to provide a convenient, transparent and efficient means for consumers to seek redressal by enabling online complaint filing, digital submission of documents, online payment of fees and also supports virtual courtrooms, enabling the hearing of cases remotely and ensuring faster disposal while reducing dependency on physical infrastructure. These features address bottlenecks like geographical barriers, scheduling conflicts and manual interventions.

Further, VC equipment for conducting hearing through video conferencing mode has already been installed and made functional at 10 benches of the National Consumer Disputes Redressal Commission (NCDRC) and 35 benches of State Consumer Disputes Redressal Commissions (SCDRCs).e-Jagriti has reduced reliance on physical proceedings and has accelerated justice delivery. The National Consumer Disputes Redressal Commission (NCDRC) and State Commissions in Chandigarh, Chhattisgarh, Himachal Pradesh, Karnataka, Madhya Pradesh, Meghalaya, Nagaland, Puducherry, Punjab, Rajasthan, Tamil Nadu, and Uttarakhand achieved disposal rates above 100% after July, 2025. In 2025, 1,62,474 cases were filed and 1,50,197 disposed of, that outperformed the disposal rate of the year 2024.

Also, 679 Non-Resident Indians (NRIs) registered their complaints using e-Jagriti portal from abroad till 28th February, 2026.

The National Consumer Helpline (NCH) administered by the Department of Consumer Affairs has emerged as a single point of access to consumers across the country for their grievance redressal at a pre- litigation stage. Consumers can register their grievances from all over the country in 17 languages including Hindi, English, Kashmiri, Punjabi, Nepali, Gujarati, Marathi, Kannada, Telugu, Tamil, Malayalam, Maithili, Santhali, Bengali, Odia, Assamese and Manipuri through a toll-free number 1915. These grievances can be registered on Integrated Grievance Redressal Mechanism (INGRAM), an omni-channel IT enabled central portal, through various channels- WhatsApp (8800001915), SMS (8800001915), email (nch-ca@gov.in), the NCH app, the web portal (consumerhelpline.gov.in) and the Umang app, as per their convenience. 1,398 companies, who have voluntarily partnered with NCH as part of the ‘Convergence’ programme directly respond to these grievances according to their redressal process and revert by providing a feedback to the complainant on the portal.

The technological transformation of the NCH has significantly boosted its call-handling capacity. The number of calls received by NCH has grown from 62,172 calls in December 2019 to 3,59,336 calls in December 2025. This growth reflects the rising confidence of consumers in the helpline. Similarly, the average number of complaints registered per month has surged from 37,062 in 2017 to 1,47,635 in 2025.

Additionally, grievance registration via WhatsApp has gained momentum, with the percentage of complaints filed through the platform increasing from 12% in December 2023 to 21% in December 2025 demonstrating a growing preference for digital communication channels.

In a significant move to further enhance grievance redressal, NCH has introduced AI-based Speech Recognition, a Translation System, and an AI enabled Chatbot as part of the NCH 2.0 initiative. These technological advancements aim to make the grievance filing process more seamless, efficient, and inclusive. The AI-powered Speech Recognition and Translation System enables consumers to file complaints through voice input, reducing manual intervention. The AI enabled Chatbot provides real-time assistance, streamlining complaint-handling processes, and improving the overall user experience. These upgrades ensure that consumers from diverse linguistic backgrounds have equal access to the grievance redressal system.

The National Consumer Helpline (NCH) has successfully facilitated refund of ₹52 crore to consumers between 25th April 2025 and 31st January 2026. This significant redressal was achieved across 31 sectors, effectively addressing 79,521 consumer grievances related to refund claims.

(d) & (e) : To safeguard consumers from unfair trade practices in e-commerce, the Department of Consumer Affairs has also notified the Consumer Protection (E-commerce) Rules, 2020 under the provisions of the Consumer Protection Act, 2019. These rules, inter-alia, outline the responsibilities of e-commerce entities and specify the liabilities of marketplace and inventory e-commerce entities, including provisions for consumer grievance redressal.Central Consumer Protection Authority, in exercise of the powers conferred by Section 18 of the Consumer Protection Act, 2019, issued “Guidelines for Prevention and Regulation of Dark Patterns, 2023” on 30th November, 2023, listing 13 specified dark patterns identified in e-Commerce sector. These include false urgency, Basket Sneaking, Confirm shaming, forced action, Subscription trap, Interface Interference, Bait and switch, Drip Pricing, Disguised Advertisements, Nagging, Trick Wording, Saas Billing and Rogue Malwares.

A Joint Working Group, comprising representatives from Ministries, National Law Universities and Voluntary Consumer Organizations, has been constituted vide Office Memorandum dated 5th June,2025 for identifying the dark patterns and stakeholders to work together in creating a transparent, ethical and user- centric online environment .

An “Advisory in terms of Consumer Protection Act, 2019 on Self-Audit by E-Commerce Platforms for detecting the Dark Patterns on their platforms to create a fair, ethical and consumer centric digital ecosystem” was issued by Central Consumer Protection Authority on 5th June, 2025.

29 leading e-commerce platforms have voluntarily submitted their self-declaration letters confirming compliance with the Guidelines for Prevention and Regulation of Dark Patterns, 2023. *****