INDIAN INSTITUE OF MANAGEMENT INDORE

POST GRADUATE PROGRAM IN MANAGEMENT FOR

EXECUTIVES

(PGPMX MUMBAI)
BATCH: 2017-2019

Legal Aspects of Business

Assignment: Efficacy of Consumer Protection Laws in India.

Professor: Dr. I. Sridhar

Submitted by: Viraj Vivek Bhandare (PGPMXB1-032)

Contents
Introduction ................................................................................................................................................................3
Historical Background of Consumer Rights ................................................................................................................4
Historical Development in the International Scenario ...............................................................................................5
United Nations and Guidelines for Consumer Protection ..........................................................................................7
Development of Consumer Protection Laws in India .................................................................................................9
Consumer Protection through the Constitution ..................................................................................................... 13
Consumer Protection Act, 1986 .............................................................................................................................. 14
Redressal Mechanism.............................................................................................................................................. 15
Efficacy of Consumer Protection Laws in India ....................................................................................................... 17
Recommendations................................................................................................................................................... 19
Bibliography ............................................................................................................................................................. 21
Introduction
Humans have mastered the art of availing services that fulfill their daily needs. Our
day-to-day lives revolve around exploiting the goods and services around us with an
aim to lead a comfortable and hassle-free life. When we avail these amenities, we
become ‘consumers’. The term effectively means that we consume the assets around
us. Consumer is the focus of all marketing activities of the business organisations.
Every organization should take care of the interest of the consumers to win their
confidence. It helps the entities in growing the customer base and, thus increasing
sales and profits. However some organisations don’t follow this approach. In practice
widespread exploitation of consumers is found due to unwanted behavior of
businessmen and ignorance of consumers. To protect the Interest of consumers, the
Govt. of India enacted Consumer Protection Act and revised it many a times to make
it more effective.

Consumption is the process by which goods and services are, at last, put to final use
by people. In other words, it can be described as the end of the line of economic
activities we undertake; that begins with an evaluation of available resources and
involves the production of a variety of goods and services and their distribution or
acquiring them. There are defined legal provisions adopted by every country in order
to codify certain rules and norms regarding consumption. Thus, protecting the rights
of those who are at both the ends of this consumption process.

This paper is an effort to make a review of the effectiveness of Consumer Protection

Act 1986. Through this paper I tried to visualize the scope and usefulness of this act
in protecting consumers’ interests and rights. Some suggestions are also given to
make the act more effective.
Historical Background of Consumer Rights
The concept of protection of rights of the consumers is not new; rather it is a practice
that has been present in the society and various countries in one form or the other
historically. The Old Testament mentions a form of consumer protection, and so does
the Code of Hammurabi, but only in a mercantile perspective. An early form of
movement in defense of consumers was born in the United States, where the bases
for the birth and development of monopoly and oligopolistic capitalism had started.
The first consumer organizations were born in Denmark in 1947 and Great Britain in
1955 where the Government created the Consumer Council in order to enable
consumers to express themselves on issues reserved to producers and traders. But
the real normative innovation came with the Single European Act; it modified the
Treaty of Rome by solidifying the role of the Economic and Social Committee, to
whom were attributed powers to safeguard the consumers. Over the years, some
important changes were made to the above-mentioned legislation that paved the way
for a wider consumer policy. But despite these additions, it still lacked a solid
foundation that allowed getting real consumer protection.
Historical Development in the International Scenario

U.S.A.

In the United States, swift industrialization after the end of the Civil War in 1865 led
to unifications and incorporations and to the formation of trusts and cartels, which
advanced a great deal by the 1880s. To check the concentration of corporate power
and its impact on economic development, the Sherman Act was passed in the year
1890. The Act declared every contract, combination in the form of trust or otherwise
or, conspiracy in restraint of trade or commerce, to be illegal.

The Federal Trade Commission Act established a new machinery referred to as the
Federal Trade Commission which, together with the Department of Justice, was
responsible for enforcement of all anti-trust legislations in addition to the setting up of
this new enforcement agency. Unfair methods and practices of competition were
prohibited.

An essential step in this direction was taken by the United States of America, paving
the way for consumer rights in the year 1962, when President John F. Kennedy of the
United States of America called upon the U.S. Congress to accord its approval to the
Consumer Bill of Rights. The key elements that were recognized by the Bill were:

 Right to choice – Consumers must be provided free choice and alternatives

when it comes to choosing commodities and services offered by various
companies. The government emboldens this right of fair commerce by
ensuring limits on price gouging, underselling, patent ownership, monopolies,
and anti-trust.

 Right to information – Businesses must provide customers with accurate

information, permitting them to make informed decisions about products and
services. This includes correct packaging, advertising, and full disclosure of
past issues.
  Right to safety – Consumers have the right to safeguard against
merchandises that have caused physical harm (excluding automobiles). This
right was formally enacted in 1972 and is enforced by the federal Consumer
Product Safety Commission (CPSC). The CPSC has established product
standards, testing regulations, and warning labels to assert consumer rights.

 Right to be heard – Consumers have the right to voice criticisms, grievances

and concerns regarding company practices and products in order to make
sure that their interests are not harmed by such practices. The U.S. Attorney
General, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) and the Better Business
Bureau (BBB) represent only a few of the platforms in which consumers may
be heard.

Later on, Right to consumer education was also added in the Bill. The President
decided to call upon the Congress on the day of 15th March 1962 and hence, we
celebrate the day as World Consumer Day.

United Kingdom

United Kingdom witnessed a development in this field soon after World War II. Various
legislations were enacted between the year 1948 and 1973, such as the Monopolies
and Restrictive Practices Enquiry and Controls Act, 1948 amended by the Monopolies
and Restrictive Practices Act, 1953, the Restrictive Trade Practices Act, 1968; the
Resale Price Act, 1964; the Monopolies and Mergers Act, 1965 and the Fair Trading
Act, 1973 to codify the redressal in case of complaints from consumers.

Amongst the above-enacted legislations, the Fair Trading Act, 1973 played a major
role in developing a new and comprehensively organized market environment as it
widened the scope and included in its purview the existing laws on monopolies and
mergers, and restrictive trade practices. Further, this Act has a wide range of
applicability to various players such as business, professionals, nationalized industries
and public undertakings. Apart from these, the Consumer Protection Act, 1961 was
enacted, which aimed at empowering the executive to promulgate regulations. Unfair
Contracts Terms Act was enacted in 1977 to deal with the situation of the consumer
being exploited by way of standard form of contracts.

Germany

A detailed anti-monopoly legislation was enacted in Germany in the year 1957, which
was called an Act against Restraints of Competition Ac

Since then, it has seen a number of amendments. It does not make monopoly illegal
but promotes the idea that such dominance in a market place must not be used to
cause harm to others. In other words, the legislation states that there must be no
abuse of the dominance that a monopoly enjoys in a market.

The Act also prohibits coercion, boycott, and discrimination, whether the one ejected
by unilateral or concerted action of enterprises.

United Nations and Guidelines for Consumer Protection

Ever since its establishment, the United Nations has taken various steps aimed at
providing safeguards to the consumers around the world against malpractices which
result in any kind of injury to them by prescribing a minimum required standard to be
strictly complied by in manufacturing and packaging of various commodities,
tightening the punishments for those who indulge in such practices, providing
certification for products such as jeweler, diamonds, gold, etc. The United Nations has
been endeavoring to promote cooperation among the member nations on various
issues.

On 9th April 1985, after consensus with the Economic and Social Council, the General
Assembly of the United Nations adopted certain guidelines for consumer protection.
These guidelines are meant to provide the framework for countries, particularly for
developing countries, to be used in elaborating and strengthening consumer
protection policies and legislation to protect consumers and also promote international
cooperation in this field.
Objectives of these guidelines as follows:

 to support countries in achieving or sustaining adequate protection for their

population as consumers;

 to facilitate production and distribution arrangements reactive to the needs

and desires of consumers;

 to encourage high levels of virtuous conduct of those engaged in the

production and dissemination of goods and services to consumers;

 to assist countries in restricting obnoxious business practices by all

enterprises at the national and international levels which adversely affect
consumers;

 to facilitate the development of self-governing consumers’ groups;

 to further international co-operation in the field of Consumer Protection; and

 To encourage the development of such market environments as to provide

consumers with a greater choice at lower prices.
Development of Consumer Protection Laws in India

Vedic Period

In ancient society, human relations with each other and with nature were guided by
principles of the Dharma, which derived its origins from the Vedas. The belief system
had put the Vedas on the top of everything and considered the word of the Vedas as
the words of the God himself. Thus, it is safe to assume that the Vedas can be
considered as the primary source of law in Indian society. To quote only a few: (i) Tell
the truth, (ii) Never tell the untruth, (iii) Never hurt anyone and (iv) Perform the acts
which are not forbidden. An introspection to these prehistoric literature reveals
various commands/dictates/injunctions/prescriptions regulating different phases of
trade and activities affecting consumers and providing sanctions in the form of
punishment or monetary sanction in the case of their violation.

The laws regarding weights and measures have been depicted in Kautilya’s
Arthshastra. Similarly, Yajnavalkya also presented his views on these topics in
Yajnavalkya-Samhita. Manu Smriti contains punishments for adulteration in these
measures and weights. Provisions with regard to sale and purchase transactions are at
the essence of the Yajnavalkya-Samhita, wherein rigorous rules have been prescribed
for safeguard of the purchaser and provide him some time to evaluate the utility of
goods purchased and allowing him to return such goods which he finds unsuitable or
unworthy. The sale of samples is also regulated by “Yajnavalkya”, when he provided
punishment to the trader who deceived a purchaser by showing a different article and
changing it subsequently at the time of sale or delivery. Another interesting fact about
these ancient prescriptions is that they seem to have sensed the future requirements.
This is evident from the fact that an elaborate mechanism regarding pricing policy and
profit sharing ratio charged by the traders on the goods sold can be seen in the
Yajnavalkya-Samhita.

In order to protect consumers from such malpractices, “Yajnavalkya-Samhita”

prescribed certain standard norms regarding deduction in weight due to wastage
caused in making ornaments so that the goldsmith might refrain themselves from
claiming great wastage and in case they did so, they were to be punished.

Medieval Period

Albeit Ancient Hindu Law kept on overseeing Hindu masses especially in the field of
individual law, the lawful standards of Muhammadan laws were engrafted in the
Indian legal framework with the coming of Islam in India. The Holy Quran, which is
the source of Islamic law mentions the problems faced by consumers today. It
condemns the use of unjust weights and measures.

The problem of unwarranted rate of interest, charged by the sellers to the customers
particularly in matters of purchase by hire, is a universal one, faced by all class of
consumers all over the world. Laws have been passed to protect consumers from this
jeopardy known as USURY. In India, the Usurious Loans Act, 1918 and the Hire-
purchase Act, 1972, intend to protect the consumers from unjustified excessive rates
of interest. Interestingly, the Holy Quran took up this matter seriously, and the
practice of usury was condemned in the severest term.

During the ancient period “Vedas,” Code of “Kautilya”, “Manu Smriti”, “Yajnavalkya-
Samhita”, “Narada Samriti”, and various other ancient codes contained provisions with
a view to cater and protect the interests of the consumers and provided punishment in
case of the violations of those provisions containing directives.Efforts to protect
consumers through laws were made in Ancient Hindu Codes and the “Holy Quran”.
With the advent of British rule in India, the common law system of administration of
justice was also implanted on the Indian soil and during 17th, 18th and first half of 19
centuries, the rights and interest of consumers were mainly regulated and protected
by the common law of Tort or Law of Contracts.

Pre-Independence

With the advent of the British rule, came different English legislations in India that
aimed at protecting the interest of the public at large. These legislations did not
exclusively talk about consumers per se but in application, indirectly covered their
interests. In spite of these enactments, the principles of common law continued to
govern the judgments of the Privy Council. In other words, it can be said that the
principles of common law overshadowed the legislations, which were introduced in
India by the British Empire. Interestingly enough, though these enactments were
present in the society, there was no notable improvement in the economic and social
position of the Indian people as consumers, as they kept suffering due to unfair trade
practices of the foreigners and various malpractices present in the market.

The Indian Penal Code, enacted in the year 1860 contains the provisions that deal
with “offence relating to weights and measures” under Chapter XIII. Sec. 272 and 273
prescribe punishments for the offence of adulteration of food or drink. The Drugs and
Cosmetics Act, 1940 played a crucial role in the regulation of import, manufacture,
distribution and sale of adulterated or misleading drugs and cosmetics.

The Indian Contract Act enacted in the year 1872 governs the contractual aspects of
transactions entered into by two parties. The essence of this legislation lies in the
phrase “meeting of minds”. The lawmakers realized that “meeting of minds” is one
such phenomenon, which you may not find in all the scenarios. When an individual
purchases certain commodity form a distributor or seller, the entire gamut of the
transaction entered into between them rests in the terms agreed to. The principles of
contract govern the determination of rights and obligations of both the parties to a
transaction.

Making a proposal by one person to the other creates the contractual relationship
between two people. Any agreement when entered into by the mutual consent of both
the parties takes the form of a contract. In other words, in order to an agreement to
qualify as a contract, both the parties must agree “to the same thing” and “in the
same manner.”
Post-Independence

Post-independence, India has been more aware of the fact that the interest of the
consumer is a priority in a democracy. No democracy can withstand if its consumers
are unsatisfied or if they feel that their utility of the goods and services they are
getting is not worth the consideration, or if they suffer injury due to malpractices
prevalent in the society.

In the year 1954, the Prevention of Food Adulteration Act was enacted with an aim to
curb the evils of adulteration of various harmful and toxic elements in the
commodities. Though the Indian Penal Code already classified the act of “Adulteration
of Drugs”, “Sale of Adulterated Drugs”, and “Sale of Drug as a Different Drug or
Prescription “as offences and provided punishment for them, the Prevention of Food
Adulteration Act helped to strengthen the restrictions further. The following
legislations were further enacted and are currently applicable which govern consumer
laws in India:

 The Drugs (Control) Act, 1950;

 The Prevention of Food Adulteration Act, 1954.

 The Essential Commodities Act, 1955.

 The Monopolies and Restrictive Trade Practices Act, 1969.

 The Bureau of Indian Standard Act, 1986.

 The Consumer Protection Act, 1986.

Consumer Protection through the Constitution
The Constitution of India, which came into force on 26th January, 1950 is the primary
document that governs the legislative environment of the country by the virtue of its
Articles, Schedules and Parts. The People of India have solemnly resolved, through
the Constitution to secure fellow citizens. Justice–Social economic, political, Liberty
of–thought, expression, faith and worship, Equality of–status and opportunity and to
promote among them all Fraternity, thus, assuring dignity of the individual and the
unity and integrity of the nation.

In the words of W. Friedman, the constitution endeavors to establish a social service

nation where, the state performs various functions such as protector, as a dispenser
of social service, as an industrial manager, as an economic controller, as an arbitrator,
etc. Hence, although there is no exclusive usage of the word “consumer” in the
Constitution, the expressions “social service”, is deemed to have taken consumer
protection into its ambit. The well-known consumerist Ralph Nadar has equated the
word “Consumer” with the word “Citizen”. The phrase “All Citizens” necessarily
includes the interest of different sections of people and various classes of consumers.
Moreover, by virtue of Art. 14, all are treated equal in the eyes of law. In other words,
all the manufacturers, traders, producers, distributors, etc., are to enjoy equal reward
or when it comes to punishment, there can be no unequal treatment there too. It is
now well established that under Art. 14 of the Constitution, no state monopoly could
be arbitrary in its dealings with the consumer. Under Article 21 which guarantees right
to life and personal liberty denial of an essential service by the state might amount to
violation of this right.

In order to transform the constitutional mandates into reality and fulfill the aspirations
of the people of India, several legislations have been enacted during the post
independent era dealing with and protecting the rights of consumers and other
interrelated persons. So much so, the main enactments which directly deal with the
safeguard of consumers need a close examination with a view to trace out the growth
of consumer protection laws during the post-independent period through statutory
measures and to assess the efficacy of the Protection being given thereunder to the
consumers, individually or as a class or a group. Art. 47 of the Constitution imposed a
duty upon the state to improve public health and keeping in view this mandate and to
make drugs available at reasonable price to all the persons without any
discrimination, the Drugs (Control) Act, 1950 was enacted, and it came into force on
7th April 1952.

Upon analyzing The Prevention of Food Adulteration Act, 1954 it can be pointed out
that the legislation does not provide any remedy to consumer or group of consumers
in the case of any injury or loss suffered by them due to use of such adulterated,
misbranded or prohibited article of food covered under the “Prevention of Food
Adulteration Act, 1954.”

Consumer Protection Act, 1986

Currently being the principle legislation when it comes to the laws for consumer
protection in India, the Consumer Protection Act was enacted in the year 1986 with an
aim to provide more protection to consumers against the evil practices of the market.
It effectively deals with the problems faced by an individual consumer and has no
express provisions regarding “maintaining or increasing supplies of any essential
commodity or for securing their equitable distribution, and availability at fair prices or
dealing with persons indulging in hoarding and black-marketing of, and profiteering in,
essential commodities and with the evil of vicious inflationary prices”. The Consumer
Protection Act establishes a legal framework for safeguarding the rights and interests
and to accord socio-economic justice to the people of the Indian Republic.
Redressal Mechanism
The Act of 1986 prescribes for a quasi-judicial machinery for the purpose of redressal
of consumer related disputes. The fundamental principles upon which the working of
these quasi-judicial body rests are the principles of natural justice. Further, the Act
empowers such bodies to give reliefs of specific nature and award appropriate
compensation to the aggrieved party as they may find it fit in a particular case.

Jurisdiction of Consumer Forum

Originally, a consumer had the right to approach the District Forum with a complaint if
the value of goods consumed or service rendered in the matter or dispute did not
exceed Rs. 1, 00,000, whereas as per the COPRA, 1986, if the value of such goods
and services exceeds Rs. 1, 00,000 but is less than Rs. 10, 00, 000, the complaint can
be filed with the State Commission. The National Commission is the redressal forum
for the consumer whose value of goods exceeds ten lakhs. By virtue of amendment in
the year 1993, the pecuniary jurisdiction in the case of the District Forum was raised
to five lakhs, five to ten lakhs for the State Commission and subsequently, the
National Commission was given the power to deal with complaints where this value
exceeded ten lakhs.

The Consumer Protection Act was subsequently amended by the Amendment Act of
2002 which came into force in 2003. The range for State Commission is from rupees
twenty lakhs to rupees one crores, and the National Commission has jurisdiction over
cases where such value exceeds rupees one crores.

Further, as per Sec. 2(b)(iv), any consumer or any number of consumers are legally
entitled to bring a class action against a trader if they have the same interest in the
product used or service availed.

Under Sec. 21(b), the National Commission is empowered to call for records and pass
appropriate orders in a dispute pending before the State Commission decided by any
State Commission if the National Commission is satisfied that the State Commission:
  has exercised the jurisdiction which it was not entitled to, or

 has failed to exercise such jurisdiction which it was entitled to, or

 has exercised its jurisdiction illegally or with material irregularity

Provision of Appeal: If a party is not satisfied with the decision of the District
Forum, an appeal can be filed against the order in the State Commission within a
period of 30 days. This period is same for filing an appeal against the decision of the
State Commission in the National Commission. The Hon’ble Supreme Court of India
acts as the Apex Redressal Body in the case of consumer disputes, and it can
entertain an appeal within 30 days from the decision of the National Commission.
Efficacy of Consumer Protection Laws in India
1. The Consumer Protection Act, 1986 had limited impact on consumer empowerment
mainly due to lack of awareness about the Act and its provisions. Comparatively the
impact has been more on males than females. The urban consumers are much more
aware about the Act than their rural counterparts. It is also evident that higher the
age group more the awareness about the Act and its provisions. Similarly higher the
education level and income level more the awareness about the Act.

2. The Act has much less impact on the marginalized sections of the society who lack
education and are living in the rural areas with low level of income.

3. The awareness level about the Consumer Protection Act and Consumer Rights is
higher in areas where consumer clubs have been set up in schools and colleges and
are actively involved in consumer activities.

4. The limited impact and the ineffectiveness of the Consumer Protection Act, 1986 to
a large extent is not due to inadequacy of the law or its provisions but it is due to the
poor implementation of the Act and the apathy of the governments and other
stakeholders including the consumers.

5. The effectiveness of the Consumer Protection Act is marginal as far as redressal of

consumer complaints is concerned. The District Forums to a very large extent are not
able to deliver justice quickly and in a cost effective manner as envisaged under the
Act and therefore, consumers are losing faith in the redressal mechanism at the
District level. Moreover, the compensation awarded is so small that there is apathy
among the consumers to file complaints in the district forums as the time and cost
factor does not favour the consumer. Timely complaint redressal is the key to success
of the CP Act.

6. There is a broad consensus among the various stakeholders that the delay in
disposal of cases is largely due to the involvement and appearance of lawyers in all
cases. Because of this the proceedings have become too technical, cumbersome, and
expensive as slowly the procedures of the civil court have crept in the proceedings of
the District Forums.

7. The District Forums to a large extent lack the capacity to deliver speedy justice
due to lack of adequate infrastructure, poor management of records, shortage of
manpower and the required skill and knowledge of the members manning the District
Forums.
8. The delay in filling up of the vacancies at all the three levels of the redressal
mechanism has further added to the problem leading to large pendency of complaints.

9. Computerization of the redressal agencies/mechanism should have helped in better

management of data and thereby bringing greater efficiency in the working of the
redressal agencies. The impact of computerization has been lackluster due to lack of
computer skills among the members of the redressal agencies, shortage of technical
manpower and consumer peripherals, inadequate bandwidth leading to poor internet
connectivity and also irregular power supply. This has led to delay in disposal of
complaints and the Consumer Protection Act has not been very effective in protecting
consumer interests in the country.

10. Consumer welfare does not seem to be a priority area for the State Governments
as there is no separate Department of Consumer Affairs in the states and it has been
merged with Food and Civil Supplies Department. As a result of this the line
department dealing exclusively with consumer affairs down to the village level does
not exist. The Civil Supplies officers are too over worked with PDS.

11. No specific policies/ strategies have been framed by the state governments on
consumer protection. No serious and meaningful effort is made by the state
governments to educate the consumers. Enormous delay takes place in filling up the
vacancies in the District Forums/State Commissions and also in providing
infrastructure. State governments mainly depend on the grants from the central
government. In a federal polity unless the state governments give importance to
consumer welfare, not much can be achieved.

12. The Consumer Protection Councils at the District and the State level have largely
not been constituted. Even where they have been constituted after a long delay, they
have remained dysfunctional and purposeless and the meetings are just a formality
and a ritual without any worthwhile agenda.

13. The Central Government has to play a much more proactive role as far as
consumer welfare is concerned. In the present scenario central allocation to states
and various other organizations has to be increased with timely release of funds to
sustain the programmes. Specific programmes have limited impact.
Recommendations
1. To strengthen the consumer movement in the country the State Governments
should set up a separate Department of Consumer Affairs or at least a Directorate of
Consumer Affairs with adequate budget and manpower to begin with. However, in the
long term a full-fledged Department of Consumer Affairs needs to be set up.

2. The Consumer Protection Councils envisaged under the Consumer Protection Act
can play a meaningful role in promoting consumer welfare. Particularly at the district
level these bodies can also provide a forum for various stakeholders to meet and
share their problems. Therefore, there is a need to strengthen these councils and
ensure that they are constituted and meet regularly.

3. At the District level the President and the Lady Member may be nominated as
members of the Council. Similarly at the State level the President and the lady
member of the State Commission must be nominated as the members of the State
Council. At present in most of the states the members of the redressal agencies are
not members of these bodies.

4. There is an urgent need to strengthen the CONFONET project. At present hardly

15- 20 percent of all the data of the redressal agencies is being uploaded. As a result
there is no mechanism through which an all India data of the redressal agencies can
be retrieved. Unless data and record management improves it would be very difficult
to enhance the efficiency of the redressal agencies. TSP may be provided for another
five years to support the redressal agencies.

5. A large number of service providing departments and organizations have consumer

interface but there is no mechanism to address consumer issues. It would be
appropriate that a middle level officer in each department is designated as Consumer
Welfare Officer both in the central and the state governments.

6. All Government Departments as well as Public and Private Sector Enterprises

having public interface must have a Consumers Complaint Redressal Cell and run it
impartially.

7. The District Forums are the first point of contact for the aggrieved consumers. But
these bodies themselves are not consumer friendly as in none of these three tier
redressal bodies there is a desk to help or guide the consumers. Therefore a “MAY I
HELP YOU DESK” needs to be set up in each of these Forums/Commissions to help
and guide the consumers.
8. The members being appointed to the District Forums by and large lack knowledge
and skill to function effectively. It is time to introduce an objective type written test
(MCQ) for the aspirants of the District Forums to screen them. Only those who qualify
the written test should be called for the interview. This will go a long way in bringing
competent and qualified people as members of the District Forums. (It is already
being done in Andhra Pradesh.)

9. Delay in filling up the vacancies is hampering the working of the three tier redressal
agencies leading to pendency of complaints. Moreover, the State government keeps
the recommendations made by the selection committee for appointment of President
and Members pending for a very long time leading to unnecessary delay and
pendency of cases. The process of filling up of the vacancies of the members of the
District Forums, State Commissions and National Commission must begin at least 6-8
months before the vacancy actually takes place and the selections finalized at the
earliest.

10. To fill up the post of Presidents and Members in the District Forums and the State
Commissions, the State Government may make a „Standing Panel‟. The Presidents
and Members of the District Forums, who have very good record, should be
considered for re-appointment. Further, if there is vacancy in a particular District
Forum, that Forum should be temporarily clubbed with the neighboring District Forum,
so that consumer does not suffer for want of action on the part of the authority.

11. With a view to empower the Presidents of the State Commissions and the District
Forums, to discharge their administrative duties in a proper manner and to exercise
the financial powers and also to enhance their functionality there is a need to declare
the President of State Commission as “Head of Department” and President of the
District Forum as “Head of Office”.

12. The pendency in the State Commissions is increasing, therefore, there is a need to
constitute adequate number of additional Benches considering that, on an average, a
Bench of a State Commission consisting of two Members could not be expected to
dispose of more than 1000 cases in a full year.
Bibliography

www.google.com

www.wikipedia.com

www.gov.in