Parliament Question: Reforms in Consumer Protection Laws

ORIGINAL IN HINDI Government of India Ministry of Consumer Affairs, Food and Public Distribution Department of Consumer Affairs LOK SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO.1624 (OIH) TO BE ANSWERED ON 10.12.2025 REFORMS IN CONSUMER PROTECTION LAWS 1624. SHRI ADITYA YADAV: (OIH) Will the Minister of CONSUMER AFFAIRS, FOOD AND PUBLIC DISTRIBUTION be pleased to state: (a) whether the Government has reviewed the impact of recent reforms in consumer protection laws on market behaviour and consumer grievance redressal system and the effectiveness of awareness campaigns on consumer rights in Budaun district; (b) if so, the details of steps being taken by the Government to strengthen enforcement against unfair trade practices, increase the speed and efficiency of resolution of consumer complaints and expand consumer education programmes in the district; and (c) if not, the reasons therefor? ANSWER THE MINISTER OF STATE CONSUMER AFFAIRS, FOOD AND PUBLIC DISTRIBUTION (SHRI B.L. VERMA) (a) to (c) : Department of Consumer Affairs is continuously working for protection and empowerment of consumers by enactment of progressive legislations. With a view to modernize the framework governing consumer protection in the era of globalization, technologies, e-commerce markets etc., the Consumer Protection Act, 2019 was enacted. Salient features of the Consumer Protection Act, 2019 are establishment of a Central Consumer Protection Authority(CCPA); simplification of the adjudication process in the Consumer Commissions such as enhancing pecuniary jurisdiction of the Consumer Commissions, online filing of complaint from the Consumer Commission having jurisdiction over the place of work/residence of the consumer irrespective of the place of transaction, videoconferencing for hearing, deemed admissibility of complaints, if admissibility is not decided within 21 days of filing; provision of product liability; penal provisions for manufacture/sale of adulterated products/spurious goods; provision for making rules for prevention of unfair trade practice in e-commerce and direct selling. The Consumer Protection Act, 2019 provides for a three tier quasi-judicial machinery at District, State and National level commonly known as “Consumer Commissions” for protection of the rights of consumers and to provide simple and speedy redressal of consumer disputes including those related with unfair trade practices. The Consumer Commissions are empowered to give relief of a specific nature and award compensation to consumers, wherever appropriate. As of 04.12.2025, a total of 1,766 consumer cases have been filed before the Budaun District Consumer Disputes Redressal Commission, of which 1,582 cases have been disposed of.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. 1169 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 70,159 in October, 2019 to 3,08,130 in October, 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 1,42,605 in 2025 [as on 31.10.2025]. Additionally, grievance registration via WhatsApp has gained momentum, with the percentage of complaints filed through the platform increasing from 11% in October, 2023 to 30% in October, 2025 demonstrating a growing preference for digital communication channels. NCH 2.0 aims 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. To safeguard the interests of consumers from unfair trade practices in e-commerce, the Department of Consumer Affairs has 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. Under the provisions of the Consumer Protection Act, 2019, the Central Consumer Protection Authority (CCPA), an executive agency, came into existence on 24.07.2020. It is designed to intervene, to prevent consumer detriment arising from unfair trade practices and to initiate class action(s), including the enforcement of recalls, refunds and return of products. The CCPA has also notified the Guidelines for Prevention of Misleading Advertisements and Endorsements for Misleading Advertisements, 2022 on 9th June, 2022. These guidelines inter-alia provide for; (a) conditions for an advertisement to be non-misleading and valid; (b) certain stipulations in respect of bait advertisements and free claim advertisements; and, (c) duties of manufacturer, service provider, advertiser and advertising agency. The CCPA has issued “Guidelines for Prevention and Regulation of Dark Patterns, 2023” on 30th November, 2023 for prevention and regulation of 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. Further, an “Advisory for 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 also issued by the CCPA on 5th June, 2025.Department of Consumer Affairs has been running a country-wide multimedia consumer awareness campaign under the aegis of “Jago Grahak Jago”. Consumers are made aware of unfair trade practices, grievance redressal mechanisms, Hallmarking, ISI marked products and various other consumer related issues through almost all types of media including traditional media like TV, radio, cinema theatres, IVRS, fairs & festivals as well as digital media like Youtube etc. Under the scheme, Grant-in-Aid are also provided by the Department to States / UTs for carrying out activities on consumer awareness with local content in regional level. The Department has been actively using social media with various creatives, infographics and videos for consumer awareness. With the objective of strengthening consumer awareness at the village and Gram Panchayat level, the Department has also conducted a series of virtual capacity- building sessions for Gram Panchayats across States/UTs. *****