SURENDRANATH COLLEGE

Affiliated under University of Calcutta, FORMERLY RIPPON COLLEGE

Registered under 2f and 12 (B) of UGC Act
24/2 MG ROAD, KOLKATA - 700009

[ PROJECT REPORT ]

( Submitted for the degree of B.COM Honours )

[ in Accounting & Finance ]

(under the University of Calcutta )

CONSUMER AWARENESS & OVERVIEW

CONSUMER PROTECTION ACT .1986 & CASE STUDIES.

Name of the candidate : ANIK BISWAS

Registration No : 115-1112-1242-18
Cu Roll No : 181115-21-0019
Current Sem : 6 : College Roll : 33 (of SEM 1)
Month & Year of Submission : JULY, 2021

Supervised By
DR. PRABIR KUMAR BHADURI
SURENDRANATH COLLEGE
 ACKNOWLEDGEMENT

This project has been made possible because of a thankful support of a few people.
Firstly, I am grateful to our Prof. DR. PRABIR KUMAR BHADURI
who gave me the opportunity to do this project, whose constant guidance and
assistance has helped me to complete the project successfully.

Secondly, I am also thankful to my family and friends who helped me from time to time
whenever I was in need of anything for my project and lastly my god who gave me the
strength throughout the tenure of the project, to help me complete it in time.

Anik BIswas
 Student's Declaration

I hereby declare that the Project Work with the title CONSUMER AWARENESS &
OVERVIEW submitted by me for the partial fulfilment of the degree of B.Com.
Honours in Accounting & Finance in Business under the University of Calcutta is my
original work and has not been submitted earlier to any other University Institution for
the fulfilment of the requirement for any course also declare that no chapter of this
manuscript in whole or in part has been incorporated in this report from any earlier
work done by others or by me.
However, extracts of any literature which has been used for this report has been duly
acknowledged providing details of such literature in the references.

Place: KOLKATA Name : ANIK BISWAS

Registration No : 115-1112-1242-18
Roll No : 181115-21-0019
SEM- 6 Roll - 33 (of sem1)
 Supervisor's Certificate

This is to certify that ANIK BISWAS, a student of B.Com. Honours in Accounting &
Finance in Business of a The Surendranath College under the University of Calcutta.
Has worked under my supervision and guidance for his Project Work and prepared a
Project Report with the title- Consumer Awareness & Overview.
The project report, which he is submitting, is his genuine and original work to the best
of my knowledge.

DR. PRABIR KUMAR BHADURI

Designa on Appropriate Professor
SURENDRANATH COLLEGE

PLACE : KOLKATA

DATE : SIGNATURE :………………………………………

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 CONTENT
———————————

CHAPTERS MAIN CONTENT PAGE

NO.
INTRODUCTION 1

• I.I Background of the study 2

• I.II OBJECTIVES OF THE STUDY 3
1 • I.III REVIEW OF LITERATURE 3
• I.IV METHODOLOGY OF STUDY 4
• I.V LIMITATIONS OF THE STUDY 4
• I.VI CHAPTER PLANNING 5

CONTACTUAL STUDY 6
2 - NATIONAL SCENARIO
- INTERNATIONAL SCENARIO

3 PRESENTATION OF DATA, ANALYSIS & FINDINGS 21-27

CONCLUSIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS 28-29

4

BIBLIOGRAPHY 29
CHAPTER 1( INTRODUCTION )
CUSTOMER AWARENESS & OVERVIEW

What is customer awareness?

Customer awareness is a part of a company’s marke ng & communica ons plan. It is a
process that helps an entrepreneur educates customers about his/her company, its
performances and the products or services his/her company delivers.

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 I.I BACKGROUND OF THE STUDY

In the globalisa on, liberalisa on and priva sa on era, most of the economic decisions are
taken by the market. Though, the government has withdrawn itself from many economic
ac vi es, it interferes very o en when the market mechanism fails due to structural rigidi es in
the economy and other factors, to provide goods and services to the people. Consump on is
one of the important economic ac vi es, which requires regular government interven on, as
market is unable to promote security and welfare aspects of the consumers. On the other hand,
consumers have to be aware not only of the commercial aspects of sale and purchase of goods but
also of the health and security aspect also. Besides this, they should be aware of their rights and
du es being as ra onal human beings.

Though, the rst consumer movement began in England a er the Second World War, a
modern declara on about the consumer’s rights was rst made in USA in the year 1962, where
four basic consumer rights i.e. Choice, informa on, safety and right to be heard were
recognised. Ralph Nader, a consumer ac vist is considered as the father of
“Consumer Movement”. 15th March is now celebrated as the World Consumer Rights Day. The
U.N.O. Also adopted in the year 1985, certain guidelines to achieve the objec ves of maintaining
protec on for consumers and to establish high level ethical conduct for those engaged in
produc on and distribu on of goods and services. In India, 24th December is celebrated
as “Consumer’s Day” every year.

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 I.II OBJECT OF THE STUDY
• Understand which category of customers would be interested in the product or service
you’re planning to sell.
• Prepare an e ec ve marke ng and adver sing plan to reach the target consumer segment.
• Help customers nd out your products and services.
• Convey a clear message explaining the strengths and bene ts of your products.
• Gain consumer’s trust by helping them understand how the product will solve their
respec ve problems.

I.III REVIEW OF LITERATURE

Literature Review on Customer Sa sfac on
Dr. Ankur Saxena
(Technocrats Ins tute of Technology - MBA, Bhopal, India)
Customer sa sfac on is an ambiguous, abstract and confusing concept. Customer sa sfac on
refers to the extent to which customers are happy and delighted with the products and services
provided by a business. In other words sa sfac on is the state of mind felt by a person who
experienced a performance of product or service that has ful lled his or her expecta ons.
Sa sfac on is thus a combina on of rela ve level of expecta ons and perceived performance.
Customer Sa sfac on with a purchase depends on the product and service real performance
rela ve to customer expecta ons. A Customer might experience various degrees of sa sfac on, if
product’s/service actual performance short of expecta ons, the customer is dissa s ed. If
performance of product and services matches expecta ons the Customer is sa s ed:-
The level of sa sfac on can also vary depending on other op ons the customer may have and
other subs tute’s available against which the customer can compare the organisa on’s products.
Expecta ons are unavoidable part of purchase decision of customers. Every me a customer makes
a purchase, there are certain inbuilt expecta ons. Sa sfac on results when those expecta ons are
met. For example, when a hungry employee goes to a restaurant for lunch, he could be having the
following expecta ons:
1. A meal of rice, bread and len ls (Dal) that will be tasty and lling.
2. Being served within ten minutes.
3. The meal cos ng not more than Rs. 100.
The basis on which these expecta ons may have been formed could be through old experience at
other restaurants. They could also have been formed owing to the promo onal claims made by the
restaurants. So, whenever a customer calls up Domino’s Pizza they expect that the company will
deliver the Pizza within 30 minutes. Some me expecta on may also formed when peer group
recommend certain product or services.

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 I.IV METHODOLOGY OF THE STUDY
Research Methodology:
The study is based on both the primary and secondary data and informa on. The primary data is
collected from the selected sample respondents from the selected districts of Maharashtra State.
The sample respondents were selected on the basis of purposive random sampling technique. The
data is collected with the help of a structured ques onnaire and interview with the respondents
and experts in these elds. The secondary data is collected mainly from Published Reports of
Government of India and Maharashtra, Research books and Journals and various websites in this
direc on. The data collected from primary and secondary sources displayed by Tables and Graphs.
The sta s cal devices and tools of data analysis are used. The present study covered the selected
districts i.e. Aurangabad, Latur, Nagpur, Akola, Jalgaon, Pune, Raigad & Thane of Maharashtra
State. The selec on of respondents covered urban as well as rural area of Maharashtra State.
Purposively designed ques onnaire is used for collec on of primary data from the selected sample
respondents. Both primary and secondary data will be processed with the help of computer based
so ware. A simple and appropriate sta s cal tool is used for the analysis of data.

I.V LIMITATIONS OF THE STUDY

1. The impact of business opera ons on the natural environment has been a public concern for
decades and a research concern for years. To date, the focus of environmental impact
research has been almost exclusively on manufacturing industries.
2. Environmental research speci c to service industries have been neglected, despite the fact
that economies of developed na ons are mostly made up of service businesses.
3. This paper explores poten al dis nc ons of service businesses as they may in uence
management mo va on for taking environmentally friendly ac ons. Through a number of
case studies, we observe some commonality of environmental mo va ons between service
and manufacturing industries, as well as some environmental themes unique to services.
4. These themes pertain to customer awareness of environmental ini a ves of service rms by
virtue of their involvement in the produc on process. Interes ngly, customer involvement
can have an adverse a ect on environmental ini a ves.

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 I.VI CHAPTER PLANNING
Consumers are largely denied their due rights, especially in developing countries such as India. The
consumers are spread widely all over a country and are poor, illiterate and are generally not aware
of their rights, though their awareness has recently increased. The manufacturers and suppliers of
goods or services o en exploit consumers by adop ng a number of unfair and restric ve trade
prac ces. They o en merge and also form tacit cartels to raise prices for maximising their pro ts at
the expense of consumers.
For instance, in case of drugs manufacturers generally charge high prices which are much above
their cost of produc on. Some pharmaceu cal companies misuse their patent rights to exploit
consumers. They therefore need protec on from unfair and restric ve trade prac ces of producers
and suppliers of goods or services.

Misleading adver sing is another means by which the producers deceive the consumers.
Adver sement is of two types. One is informa ve adver sement which informs the consumers
about the availability of certain products at certain prices. This is not objec onable as it provides
informa on to the consumers.

However, more o en the purpose of adver sement by the manufacturers and suppliers is to
mislead the ill-informed consumers about the quality and contents of their products and services.
They indulge in what is called persuasive adver sement to compete away customers from their
rivals. Such persuasive adver sements serve no useful social purpose and lead to decep on of
consumers.

The cost of adver sement is added to the cost of produc on and this leads to very high prices
being charged from the consumers. The Indian readers will be knowing well that crores of rupees
are spent on lm actors and cricket players as brand ambassadors and on adver sements on print
and electronic media to promote the sale of their products.

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 CHAPTER 2 ( CONTACTUAL STUDY )

NATIONAL SCENARIO
Consumer awareness is on the rise in India, but it s ll needs serious a en on, George Cheriyan
from CI member CUTS Interna onal discusses the results of a recent survey showing the poor state
of consumer awareness in India.

Even a er 25 years of the Consumer Protec on Act (CoPRA) in India, only 20 percent of consumers
know about it and only 42 percent have heard about consumer rights. Fi y-three percent of
consumers are unaware of the country’s redress system, the objec ve of which is to give
consumers access to simple, speedy and inexpensive redress of their grievances.
These are some of the key ndings of a na onal survey conducted by CUTS Interna onal as part of
a project en tled ‘Indian Consumers in the New Age: A Forward Looking Agenda to Address the
Concerns of the Common People’ (ConsumersUp).
The purpose of the study is to get a closer look at the consumer’s level of awareness of their basic
rights and to present a forward-looking outline to the Indian government to help guide ongoing
ac on based on the recommenda ons.

INTERNATIONAL SCENARIO
The study has been conducted in the backdrop of the establishment of a working group to give
input into the United Na ons Guidelines on Consumer Protec on (UNGCP) . The UNGCP are an
interna onal reference point for the consumer movement and Consumers Interna onal will be
working with its members over the coming months to feed in proposals on how the guidelines can
be er address the concerns of today's consumers.
The CUTS study also shows that, of the 47 percent of consumers who do know about India’s
external redress mechanisms, only 28 percent believe that it is easily accessible to common
people. Sixty-seven percent of the complaints are redressed beyond the s pulated me frame of
90 days or 150 days, whichever is applicable.

Ninety-three percent of consumers have never made a formal complaint. And of the seven percent
who have led a complaint, only 0.3% have achieved redress. If this is an indica on of consumers
losing faith in an exis ng system, then the ma er needs serious a en on.

S ll, these percentages are encouraging because compared with the situa on ve years back, the
trend is upward. For example, a survey by CoPRA commissioned by the Comptroller & Auditor
General of India from May 2006 revealed that only 18 percent of consumers were aware of CoPRA
and 34 percent of consumer rights.

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 CONCEPTUAL FRAMEWORK
Consumer Protec on Measures
Introduc on
In order to protect the interest of the consumers, government has adopted three strategies:

1. Administra ve measures
1. Technical measures
1. Legisla ve measures

Administra ve Measures
Administra ve measures of the government include the
distribu on of essen al commodi es through Public
Distribu on System (PDS). PDS is a system through which the government distributes some
essen al commodi es at a reasonable price through Fair Price Shop. In a free market economy,
price of a commodity is determined in the market through the free play of demand and
supply. Equilibrium price is that price at which demand and supply of the commodity are equal to
each other i.e. there is zero excess demand and excess supply. But some mes government
interferes in the market systems by xing the price lower than the equilibrium price, to protect the
interest of the consumers belonging to the lower strata of the society. This price is known
as Control Price. When government xes price lower than the equilibrium price, demand exceeds
supply, which leads to black-marke ng and hoarding. To check this government sales di erent
commodi es at di erent FPS at control price.

Technical Measures
Technical measures consist of Standardisa on of the product. One of the important measures
taken by the government to protect the consumers is the crea on of ins tu ons for se ng up the
standards for making and producing various products and enforcing them. In India, this has been
achieved through Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS), and Agmark. While BIS caters to the industrial
and consumer goods while Agmark is meant for the agricultural products.

The Bureau of Indian Standards, earlier known as the Indian Standards Ins tu on (ISI), whose
headquarter is located at Delhi, has the responsibility of lying down the standards for industrial
and consumer goods on a scien c basis and cer fying the goods that meet the standards and the
prescribed quality.

The Agmark is implemented under the Agricultural Produce (Grading and Marke ng) Act of 1937,
as amended in 1986. This scheme is run by the Directorate of Marke ng and Intelligence (DMI)in
the Ministry of Agriculture, Government of India. Products such honey, masala etc, carry such
marks.

At interna onal level, an ins tu on called Interna onal Organisa on for Standardisa on
(ISI),established in 1947 locate at Geneva, serves to provide such a common reference standard. All
the interna onal Companies, goods produced by them, and ins tu ons are cer ed as ISO 6000,
ISO 14000 etc.

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 Legisla ve Measures
Legisla ve measures include enactment of Consumer Protec on Act, 1986. The Government
enacted a speci c law called the Consumer
Protec on Act, 1986. The Act provides for the
Citation Act No. 68 of 1986
establishment of consumer disputes redressal
agencies at District, State and Na onal level for the
Enacted by Parliament of India
protec on of consumer interests and to redress
their grievances in speedy, simple and inexpensive
Date commenced 24 December 1986 manner. The Act has led to the se ng up
separate Department of Consumer A airs in Central
Status: In force and State Government, which focus exclusively on
the rights of the consumers, as enshrined in the Act.

CONSUMER PROTECTION ACT, 1986

Consumer Protec on Act, 1986 is an Act of the Parliament of India enacted

in 1986 to protect the interests of consumers in India. It makes provision
for the establishment of consumer councils and other authori es for the
se lement of consumers' disputes and for ma ers connected therewith
also.

“An Act to provide for be er protec on of the interests of consumers and

for that purpose to make provision for the establishment of consumer
councils and other authori es for the se lement of consumers' disputes
and for ma ers connected with there.”

Signi cance of the statue

This statue is regarded as the Magna Carta in the eld of consumer protec on for checking the
unfair trade prac ces and ‘defect in goods’ and ‘de ciencies in services’ as far as India is
concerned. It led to the establishment of a widespread network of consumer forums and appellate
courts all over India. It has signi cantly impacted how businesses approach consumer complaints
and empowered consumers to a great extent.
Consumer Protec on Council
Consumer Protec on Councils are established at the na onal, state and district level to increase
consumer awareness.

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 The Central Govt. shall by no ca on establish with e ect from (w.e.f) such date as it may specify
in such no ca on a Council to be known as the Central Consumer Protec on Council
Consumer Disputes Redressed Agencies
District Consumer Disputes Redressed Forum (DCDRF): Also known as the "District Forum"
established by the State Government in each district of the State. The State Government may
establish more than one District Forum in a district. It is a district level court that deals with cases
valuing up to ₹2 million (US$31,000).
State Consumer Disputes Redressed Commission (SCDRC): Also known as the "State Commission"
established by the State Government in the State. It is a state level court that takes up cases
valuing less than ₹10 million (US$160,000)
Na onal Consumer Disputes Redressed Commission (NCDRC): Established by the Central
Government.
Objec ves of Central Council
The objec ves of the Central Council are to promote and to protect the rights of the consumers
such as:-
The right to be protected against the marke ng of goods and services which are hazardous to life
and property.
The right to be informed about the quality, quan ty, potency, purity, standard and price of goods or
services, as the case may be so as to protect the consumer against unfair trade prac ces;
The right to be assured, wherever possible, access to a variety of goods and services at compe ve
prices ;
The right to be heard and to be assured that consumer's interest will receive due considera on at
appropriate forums;
The right to seek redressal against unfair trade prac ces or restric ve trade prac ces or
unscrupulous exploita on of consumers; and
The right to consumer educa on.
Objec ves of State Council
Jurisdic on of District Forum
Subject to the other provisions of this Act, the District Forum shall have jurisdic on to entertain
complaints where the value of the goods or services and the compensa on, if any, claimed does
not exceed rupees twenty lakhs.
A complaint shall be ins tuted in a District Forum within the local limits of whose jurisdic on:-
a) – the opposite party or each of the opposite par es, where there are more than one, at the me
of the ins tu on of the complaint, actually and voluntarily resides or carries on business or has a
branch o ce or personally works for gain, or
b) – any of the opposite par es, where there are more than one, at the me of the ins tu on of
the complaint, actually and voluntarily resides, or carries on business or has a branch o ce, or
personally works for gain, provided that in such case either the permission of the District Forum is
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 given, or the opposite par es who do not reside, or carry on business or have a branch o ce, or
personally work for gain, as the case may be, acquiesce in such ins tu on; or
c) – the cause of ac on, wholly or in part, arises.
Consumer courts do not have jurisdic on over ma ers where services or goods were bought for a
commercial purpose.
Jurisdic on of State Commission
Subject to the other provisions of this Act, the State Commission shall have jurisdic on:-
a) – to entertain
i) – complaints where the value of the goods or services and compensa on, if any, claimed exceeds
rupees twenty lakhs but does not exceed rupees one crore (R10 million); and
ii) – appeals against the orders of any District Forum within the State; and
b) – to call for the records and pass appropriate orders in any consumer dispute
Jurisdic on of Na onal Commission
The Na onal Commission has jurisdic on —
(a) to entertain—
(i) complaints where the value of the goods or services and compensa on, if any, claimed exceeds
rupees one crore; and
(ii) appeals against the orders of any State Commission; and
(b) to call for the records and pass appropriate orders in any consumer dispute which is pending
before or has been decided by any State Commission. However, the Supreme Court of India has
held that the jurisdic on of Na onal Commission under Revision Jurisdic on is very limited and
can only be exercised when State Commission exceeds its jurisdic on, fails to exercise its
jurisdic on or there is material illegality in the order passed by State Commission.

Consumer Protec on Act of 1986 And Case Studies

Consumer Protec on Act of 1986
The industrial revolu on and the development in the interna onal trade and commerce has led to
the vast expansion of business and trade, as a result of which variety of consumer goods have
appeared in the market to cater the needs of the consumers and a host of services have been
made available to the consumers like insurance, transport etc. The adver sement of goods and
services in T.V and other media in uence the demand of same by the consumers, though there
may be manufacturing defects or shortcomings in quality and purity of products or de ciency in
services rendered. In spite of various provisions made providing protec on to the consumers
against adulterated and sub-standard ar cles in di erent enactments like Code of Civil Procedure,
1908, MRTP ACT, 1969, IPC, 1960 etc., very li le could be achieved in the eld of consumer
protec on.
In order to provide for the be er protec on of the interest of the consumers, Consumer Protec on
Bill 1986 was introduced in Lok Sabha in 5th December 1986. The Bill was passed by both Houses

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 of Parliament and got the assent of the President on 24 December 1986, popularly known as
the Consumer Protec on Act of 1986.
The Act of 1986, seeks to provide be er protec on to the interests of the consumers and for the
purpose that there is Consumer Councils and other authori es for the se lement of consumer
disputes and for ma er connected therewith. To provide quick redressal of consumer disputes, a
quasi-judicial ins tu on is set up at all the three levels. These bodies have been empowered to
give relief of a speci c nature and to award, wherever appropriate, compensa on to the
consumers. Penal es of non-compliance of the orders given by the quasi-judicial bodies have also
been provided.
Case Studies
S.L.Pa VS. Postmaster, Aligarh, Orissa(1993)
Money order not delivered in me to the concerned person, is a case f de ciency in service of
worst category. If this would be the normal act of the Post O ce and the o ce, which belong to
the Union Government, no one would have faith in services rendered by them. As a result, an
amount of Rs250/- plus the money order amount of Rs.1000/- along with interest @ 18% was the
compensa on awarded to the deprived person.
K.C. Panda VS SDO,Telecom Department, Berhampur, Orissa(1994)
Telephone line was disconnected even if bill was paid. Proceeding before District Forum, Telecom
Department made an apology for the mistake occurred inadvertently. But, in spite of apology, an
amount of Rs. 2000/- was the compensa on awarded to the person concerned by the Telecom
Department.

CONSUMER GUIDANCE SOCIETY OF INDIA

The Consumer Guidance Society of India (CGSI) is a Non-

Pro t consumer organisa on established in India in 1966
to protect and educate the Indian consumer about sub-
standard products and services, adulterated foods, short
weights and measures, spurious and hazardous drugs,
exorbitant prices, endemic shortages leading to black
marke ng and pro teering, unful lled manufacture
guarantees, and a host of other problems.

Legal framework.
CGSI was the rst consumer organisa on to demand special Consumer Court for redressal of
consumers' complaints. In 1975, CGSI led a delega on of ve consumer organisa ons from
di erent parts of India to the then Minister for Food and Civil Supplies, Mr. T. A. Pai, and demand
for a comprehensive Consumer Protec on Act, Special Consumer Courts, and a Directorate for
implementa on of the Act.
CGSI’s constant follow-up was instrumental in enac ng the “Consumer Protec on Act 1986” by the
“Government of India”.
Consumer ac vi es
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 CGSI's ac vi es include (1) Consumer Educa on (2) Holding talks and exhibi ons to spread
consumer rights awareness among urban poor and rural areas (3) Consumer Complaints Redressal
(4) Tes ng of Consumer Products and (5) Publica on of "KEEMAT" a bi-monthly news magazine
now published for over 20 years having ar cles of general consumer awareness, for CGSI members
and general public.
Consumer educa on for schools and colleges
CGSI's Educa on Commi ee members had been working with other likeminded educa onists to
introduce formal Consumer Educa on in the school curriculum. A er two years of mee ngs and
discussions, CGSI e orts bore fruit. In 1994, the Maharashtra Educa on Board introduced
Consumer Educa on at the (9th) Ninth Standard Level, progressively covering students from the
(4th) Forth Standard upwards. The subject taught are the Consumer Moment, Rights &
Responsibili es of Consumers, the Consumer in the Market Place, Food Adultera on, Weights and
Measures, Environment protec on, etc. These topics included under the exis ng subjects like
Civics, Economics and Home science, are project-based, and more prac cal in nature than
theore cal or examina on oriented.
Consumer educa on
CGSI conducts programs and educates consumers in various topics, such as:
• General Consumer Awareness
• How to le a Grievance with the appropriate Authority
• Consumer Courts
• Right to Informa on Act
• Educa on Planning
• Food Adultera on & Milk Adultera on
• Oils / Vanaspa - (Dangers of Trans-fats)
• Soaps and Detergents –Types, Grades, How to purchase
• Cosme cs – Types, Grades, How to purchase
• Flavours & Fragrances / Perfumes / Body sprays – Types, Grades, How to purchase, Dangers of
using cheap products
• Property
• Telecommunica ons
• Electricity
• Energy Conserva on
• Electrical appliances
• Insurance
• Coopera ve Housing Socie es
• Airlines & Surface Transport
• Banking
• Specialised Finance Subjects like
• Commodi es Exchange
• How to manage your nances
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 • How to stay out of debt
• The Debt Market
• Mutual Funds
• Stock Exchanges
Consumer educa on project for rural consumers
CGSI started a rural project in the villages of Thane and Raigad districts (Maharashtra) in 1997, with
a sta of six and funding from Ac on Aid. By 1999, CGSI had given consumer training to consumers
in 112 villages. Over 32,300 people have received consumer educa on through 750 talks and
demonstra ons in the 2 years of the project, 107 training programs were organised and special
training in consumer ac vism given to 5,767 poten al ac vists. Many local consumer groups have
been set up in di erent areas by the consumers themselves that are now ac vely organising
exhibi ons, holding talks and redressing complaints. In the years 2005–06 and 2006–07, CGSI
conducted consumer clubs in 25 schools each in Thane & Raigad District with the help of
Maharashtra State Government. CGSI trained a total of 2500 students and teachers in the subject
of consumer awareness.
Holding talks and exhibi ons to spread consumer rights awareness among urban poor and rural
areas.
CGSI’s main thrust is in rural areas where consumer rights awareness is very low. With the help of
its dedicated volunteers and their exper se in various elds, CGSI has been organising consumer
camps, exhibi ons, impar ng consumer educa on to school and college students, etc. Today, CGSI
programs reach out to more than 20,000 consumers in a year. Now with the help of more and
more experts from various elds, CGSI imparts knowledge about prudent investment, Telecom
Services, food adultera on detec on, medical negligence, media on, legal redressal of complaints,
etc.
Complaint redressed
CGSI handles consumer complaints and o ers legal guidance to those wishing to le suits in the
Consumer Courts. In cases where there are a larger number of complaints against a par cular
party, both sides are brought together to resolve the issue. The CGSI'S Complaints Commi ee
meets twice a week. CGSI has redressed many thousands of consumer grievances over the years,
with 70-80% success in favour of the consumers. complaints cover medical/surgical malprac ce
and negligence; insurance non-payment; sub-standard drugs and medicines; home remedies;
defec ve household appliances; poor quality foods and drinks; misleading adver sing claims; and
grievances concerning investments, real estate, insurance, telephones, electricity supply, etc. CGSI
handled over 400 complaints during the year through personal counselling sessions, correctly
guiding complainants, some mes even clearly saying that they do not have a case to ght for
without wrongfully leading them on.
Product tes ng
As early as 1977, CGSI established formal product tes ng to evaluate quality by drawing samples
directly from the market without involving the manufacturers in the tes ng process. Test results
were a revela on for quality control regulatory authori es. It rst assessed the safety and
performance of domes c pressure stoves and found that two-third of the samples tested failed in
safety Parameters. CGSI sent the results to the government and Indian Standards Ins tu on (ISI)
now Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS), with a demand for mandatory cer ca on. In 1986, with the
passing of the Pressure Stoves Quality Control Order, ISI Cer ca on for pressure stoves became
mandatory. Subsequently CGSI did tests on electrical appliances and ngs - irons, immersion
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 heaters, culmina ng in the enactment of the Household Electrical Appliances (Quality Control)
Order. CGSI has developed a food adultera on tes ng kit and a milk adultera on tes ng kit for use
by the lay consumers. Many other products were tested and reports published in the Society's
monthly Journal, "KEEMAT": edible oils, powdered spices, 'surma' (kohl), geysers, clinical
thermometers, plas c water bo les, rubber teats, milk, mineral water, breads, so drinks, bath
soaps, fabric detergents, and toothpastes.
Publica ons
KEEMAT India’s rst monthly consumer magazine is now in its 43rd year of publica ons. CGSI
distributes KEEMAT to all its members. KEEMAT is also available as a free download to the public
from dedicated CGSI website www.cgsiindia.org. CGSI has also produced a number of Consumer
Guides on subjects like Electrical Appliances, Edible Oils, Pes cides, Food, Adultera on, Safety at
Home, Safe Blood, etc.
Na onal award
In 1991, CGSI received the Na onal Award for Consumer Protec on for its 25th year for service to
Consumers. CGSI hopes to reach out to more and more consumers in the new millennium and to
developed newer and more e ec ve methods of serving consumers interest.
CGSI Representa on in various bodies
Various government statutory bodies like the Bureau of Indian Standards, Telecom Regulatory
Authority of India, Maharashtra Electricity Regulatory Authority of India, Insurance Regulatory and
Development Authority of India, Consumer Advisory Commi ee of Various Industries, etc., give
representa on to CGSI due to its dedicated work force and
exper se at its disposal. Lately, the Maharashtra State
Government has given representa on to CGSI in its
pres gious Maharashtra State Consumer Protec on Council.
E ec ve September 2011, the Maharashtra state government
has entrusted CGSI to establish and manage the Maharashtra
state consumer helpline.
Considering CGSI’s experience in consumer rights protec on,
the Maharashtra State Government has awarded consumer
helpline project to CGSI since September 2011 on ve years contract. The main objec ves are as
follows:
Develop a resource centre at State level which will be networked with the Na onal Resource
Centre
Develop Alternate Consumer Disputes Redressal mechanisms at the State level
Resolve maximum number of disputes out of court
Promote ac ve par cipa on of companies and service providers in resolving consumer disputes
Early resolu on of complaints
Reach out to rural consumers
Capacity building of State level Voluntary Consumer Organisa ons
Provide service in regional language in addi on to English language
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 Consumers can call a dedicated toll-free number or send e-mail to seek
informa on, advice, or guidance for their day-to-day consumer
problems.
Under this project, counsellors have guided nearly
20,000 aggrieved consumers in 2013–14.
Maharashtra is among the top two states in
terms of number of complains handled
amongst nine states conduc ng consumer
helpline project.

C G S I ’s d o c u m e n t a r y
lm Grahakpal on
consumer rights
CGSI has produced a documentary lm Grahakpal on
consumer rights by roping a few celebri es to spread the message of
consumer rights awareness. The lm is screened at various seminars conducted by CGSI resul ng in
the helpline message reaching to nearly 16,000 viewers in a year, majority of the viewers are
college and school students who need to be responsible and aware consumers when they enter
mainstream a er comple ng their studies.

MEDIATION & COUNSELLING CLINIC

Mr. Girish Bapat, Cabinet Minister for Consumer Protec on, Government of Maharashtra and Mr.
Arun Deshpande, Chairman, Consumer Welfare Advisory Commi ee, Maharashtra on October 20,
2015 inaugurated the ‘Media on and Concilia on Clinic’ that primarily aims to resolve cases
pertaining to consumer disputes.
Landmark achievements
• I. CGSI is the earliest consumer
organisa on in India, founded in 1966.
• II. CGSI was the rst organisa on to
demand a ‘Consumer Protec on Act’
with ‘Consumer Courts’ to implement
it. This became a reality in 1986.
• III. To date, CGSI has redressed more
than 80% of the thousands of
complaints referred to it by consumers.
• IV. CGSI was the rst to establish formal
‘Consumer Product Tes ng’ in India.
• V. CGSI was the rst to publish a
monthly magazine "KEEMAT" carrying informa on of importance to consumers.
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 • VI. CGSI was the rst to promote consumer educa on; ini ate training projects in rural
areas; promote publicity drives; and represents consumer interests with Government and
other regulatory bodies.
•VII.CGSI received the Na onal Award for
Consumer Protec on in 1991.
•VIII.CGSI par cipates in a large number of
technical commi ees and Government decision-
making bodies.
•IX.
CGSI is a member of the Maharashtra State
Consumer Protec on Council.
•X. CGSI has produced a documentary lm
“Grahakpal” on consumer rights for easy
dissemina on to consumers.
CGSI is among the top two states in terms of •XI.
number of complains handled amongst nine states conduc ng consumer helpline project.
With the number of queries and requests increasing steadily, and the eagerness to cover more and
more consumers, CGSI is also conduc ng educa onal seminars in other states like Bihar, Jharkhand
and Delhi apart from Maharashtra. During the last few years, CGSI is conduc ng nearly 250
seminars each on Telecom, Banking, Financial Awareness, Food Safety etc. CGSI has ambi ous
targets to reach more and more consumers through its consumer educa on programs and make
India, a country of aware consumers resul ng in ourishing markets with quality products and
services.

INITIATIVES BY FORD
Product Quality and Customer Sa sfac on
Ford customers expect high-quality products and excep onal experiences that make their lives
be er. Our culture of collabora on and con nuous improvement means that we can deliver great
experiences as well as address any quality and sa sfac on concerns quickly and e ec vely, and
learn from every quality issue.

Our product quality vision is to achieve best-in-world quality and produc vity by driving the
disciplined execu on of common processes and standards.

Our product quality mission is to deliver con nuous quality and produc vity improvements
across all func ons while delivering high-quality vehicles our customers want and value.

Exceeding Expecta ons, Every Step of the Way

• We start thinking about people’s lives and experiences years before a new model or service
becomes available.
• Observing customers in their environments and daily lives, as well as imagining our future
world, shapes our awareness of the mobility needs of people globally.
• Understanding our customers deeply over me points to the right products and services to
o er.
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 • Focusing on the right experiences to o er provides us with criteria we can measure against,
to gauge beyond how well things func on to how well they serve people and make their
lives be er.

Managing Product Development

1. Our (Ford’s) product development process always starts with the customer: understanding
who they are, how they live and what they value in a vehicle. Then we iden fy and
implement the technologies that will meet their evolving needs and expecta ons.

2. Engineers, designers and product marke ng teams work together to nalise a vehicle
concept and, once approved, it is brought to market using our Global Product Development
System (GPDS), which combines the best produc on methods from across our global
opera ons. GPDS also provides common metrics to increase e ciency and quality. Each
vehicle must meet speci c compe ve and performance targets at every milestone in its
development, including criteria for fuel economy, emissions and substances of concern.

3. We con nually work to improve the quality of our products, using our quality policy to
ensure that quality lies at the heart of everything we do, and our extensive global Quality
Opera ng System (QOS) to manage the development and measurement of our
manufacturing processes. This helps ensure that our vehicles meet or exceed customer
expecta ons at every stage of vehicle development and manufacture.

Tracking Progress on Quality

We monitor product quality through a combina on of internal and external measurements that
assess how we are doing and where we can improve.

• The Global Quality Research System (GQRS), our primary quality survey, tracks customer
sa sfac on and “Things Gone Wrong.” It is implemented on our behalf every quarter by the
market research and consul ng rm Ipsos RDA Group.
• We also subscribe to J.D. Power and Associates’ annual Ini al Quality Study, Vehicle
Dependability Study, and Automo ve Performance, Execu on and Layout (APEAL) Study,
and track warranty claims and costs internally.

Enhancing the User Experience

Building on what we observe and understand from our customers, we use our User Experience
(UX) Everyday Framework to help us develop new experiences that meet their needs and exceed
their expecta ons.

A Warm Welcome

Lincoln has applied what it knows about its customers to develop the Embrace experience.
Embrace automa cally detects, welcomes and an cipates the driver’s needs, with subtle and
focused ligh ng where it’s needed (from all-round ligh ng to a targeted “ oormat”), seamless
unlocking when entering the vehicle and ambient internal ligh ng set to individual preferences.

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 Are You Si ng Comfortably?

Inspired by private jets and high-end o ce furniture, we’ve introduced new Perfect Posi on Seats
to the Lincoln Con nental. The patented design allows the seat to be adjusted up to 30 ways,
matching individual body shapes and weights for op mal comfort. Thigh cushions extend and
adjust independently – allowing one leg to remain at rest while the other engages the pedals – and
a massage func onality helps reduce muscle fa gue in the upper legs and lower back.

Simple but E ec ve

Using what they learned about Lincoln customers, the team responsible for the drive mode control
for the Navigator simpli ed its terrain management system. By de ning “ideal” drive control
behaviours – o ering ne-grain control for occasional use by “experts” and a more intui ve,
integrated control for everyday drivers – engineering and design teams were able to provide a
solu on that met the needs of both groups.

De ning the objec ves and strategies of consumer educa on and evalua ng outcomes

1. Clearly de ned objec ves and strategies can increase the e ec veness and e ciency of
consumer educa on policies; to enhance coherence, such objec ves and policies should be
coordinated,
2. Consumer educa on should begin at an early age and cover all life stages;
3. it should be incorporated into educa onal programmers for lifelong learning or school
curriculum, where appropriate.
1. The objec ves, content and delivery of consumer educa on should keep pace with innova on in
technology, par cularly the rapid expansion of mobile technologies.
2. Consumer educa on programmes are o en developed without su cient examina on, which
can lead to poorly designed policies.
3. Programme design should be based, when possible, on research into the educa onal needs of
the a ected consumers. This research may include surveys, focus groups, and interviews, and
4. draw on related elds, such as informa on economics, behavioural economics, and sociology.
5. Stakeholders, including consumer organisa ons, teacher and parent
6. associa ons and other
7. civil society groups, should be encouraged to assist policy makers in iden fying educa on needs.
8. Consumer educa on should be developed in a balanced way, taking regulatory and related
policies into account.
9. Ex post evalua on of the e ec veness of consumer educa on programmed is rare, re ec ng, in
part,
10.the absence of e ec ve methodologies for carrying out such evalua ons and limited available
resources.
11.Examining the extent to which educa onal programmer achieve goals is cri cal and should be
pursued as it can i) suggest areas or ways that policies could be improved, ii) help to ensure the
12.best use of available resources, and iii) help to iden fy how programmes can be e ec vely
integrated into consumers’ everyday lives. Developing methods for evalua ng the programmes
by using a variety of tools and sharing good prac ces would be bene cial.

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 JagoGrahakJago

Jago Grahak Jago is a consumer awareness programme from Ministry of Consumer A airs,
Government of India.
As part of this ini a ve, the government has used mul ple channels to create consumer awareness
through Print media adver sements, Audio Campaigns, Video Campaigns, etc., are being used for
consumer informa on and educa on about ini a ves like Insurance Ombudsman channel.

Na onal Consumer Helpline

Na onal Consumer Helpline has been set up by Ministry of Consumer A airs, Government of India.
Complaints can be registered online through the o cial website h p://consumerhelpline.gov.in/.
Complaints can also be registered through Na onal toll-free number - 1800 11 4000 or SMS can be
sent to +91 8130009809 (charges apply) men oning the name and city.

JagoGrahakJago: Empowering Consumers

"The customer is the most important visitor on our premises. He is not dependent on us. We are
dependent on him. He is not an interrup on on our work. He is the purpose of it. He is not an
outsider on our business. He is part of it. We are not doing him a favour by serving him. He is doing
us a favour by giving us an opportunity to do so."
- MAHATMA GANDHI
Consumer is the real deciding factor for all economic ac vi es. It is now universally accepted that
the extent of consumer protec on is a true indicator of the level of progress in a na on. The
growing size and complexity of produc on and distribu on systems, the high level of sophis ca on
in marke ng and selling prac ces and forms of promo on like adver sing, etc. have contributed to
the increased need for consumer protec on.
The Consumer Protec on Act, 1986 (External website that opens in a new window) is the most
important legisla on enacted to provide for e ec ve safeguards to consumers against various
types of exploita ons and unfair dealings. This Act was amended in 2002 in the form of Consumer
Protec on (Amendment) Act, 2002 (External website that opens in a new window) with some
important inclusions.

JagoGrahakJago

The slogan 'JagoGrahakJago' has now become a household name as a result of the publicity
campaign undertaken in the last 5 years. Through the increased thrust on consumer awareness in
the XI th Five Year Plan, the Government has endeavoured to inform the common man of his rights
as a consumer. As part of the consumer awareness scheme, the rural and remote areas have been
given the top priority. The Government has used mul ple channels to create awareness it includes:
Print media adver sements (External website that opens in a new window), Audio Campaigns
(External website that opens in a new window), Video Campaigns (External website that opens in a
new window), etc.

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 UPGRADATION OF STANDARDS

In helping consumers to exercise their rights, quality and standards have a crucial role to play.
Standards provide consumers with reliable benchmarks of quality. The Department has succeeded
in pu ng in place an economic framework to promote quality. The Bureau of Indian Standards
(External website that opens in a new window)has taken new ini a ves in introducing a
cer ca on scheme for foreign manufacturers (External website that opens in a new window) and
imported goods (External website that opens in a new window), food safety cer ca on (External
website that opens in a new window) as per ISO Standards. Cer ca on Scheme for Hallmarking
(External website that opens in a new window) of Gold jewelleryand Silver artefacts is an
important contribu on of the BIS in safeguarding consumer interests.

Apart from these ini a ves the standard marks like the Product Cer ca on Schemes for ISI mark
(External website that opens in a new window), Agmark, Fruit Products Order (FPO) (External
website that opens in a new window), Vegetarian and Non-Vegetarian Mark, Handloom Mark (208
KB) (PDF le that opens in a new window) , Silk Mark (External website that opens in a new
window), Wool Mark, etc. are also playing a vital role in the product standardisa on.

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CHAPTER 3 ( PRESENTATION OF DATA, ANALYSIS & FINDING )

Questionnaire

Consumer Awareness
Gradua on Personal Informa on
1. Name _______________________________________________________
2. Gender (M/F) _________________________________________________
3. Educa on:
. Illiterate:
. Primary:
. Secondary:
. Others:
________________________________________________________

Total=
Consumer Awareness Informa on

4. Do you examine the expiry date of the items you buy?

Yes /No

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5. Do you check the MRP (Maximum Retail Price) before buying a product?

Yes/No

6. Are you charged the MRP or more than/less than the MRP?

Yes /No

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7. Do you check the weight of the products men oned on the items?
Yes /No

8. Have you ever come across adultera on or duplica on items?

Yes/No

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 9. If yes to ques on (8), did you complain to ?
Shopkeeper /Main Supplier /Any Other

10. What was the response to your complaint?

Sa sfactory / Not Sa sfactory / No Response

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11. Are you aware of your rights as consumers?

Yes /No

12. If you are not sa s ed with the price/quality of the products do you realise
the need for forming some consumer clubs to ght for your rights?
Yes /No

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13. Are you ready to join such forums for the redressed of your grievance?

Yes/No

14. Are you aware of consumer courts for redressal of grievances of the consumers?

Yes /No

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15. If yes, have you ever lled a case in the consumer court?
Yes /No

16. Do you think media can play an important role in increasing consumer
awareness?
Yes /No

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 CHAPTER 4 ( CONCLUSION & RECOMMENDATION )
CONCLUSION
Consumer Rights Awareness (CRA) is directed to make the consumer aware of their rights and to
establish high level ethical conduct for those engaged in produc on and distribu on of goods and
services. High prices, duplicate ar cles, underweight and under measurements, rough behaviour,
undue condi ons, ar cial scarcity are some of the ways by which consumers are exploited by
manufacturers and traders. Limited informa on, limited supplies and low literacy are factors
causing exploita on of consumers. The consumers have to be aware not only of the commercial
aspects of sale and purchase of goods, but also of the health and security aspects. Food safety has
become an important element of consumer rights awareness and depends not only on its
nutri onal value, but also on its safety for human consump on. Modern business and company
has a great social responsibility towards the well being of society. Therefore consumer is an
important component of society. Consumer occupies a supreme posi on in a free economy and
the welfare of the consumer lies in the ful lment of his normal and legi mate expecta on with
regards to the goods and services.
Consumer rights awareness is most vital to society and a way to eliminate malprac ces by the
manufacturers, producers, and marketers. The heartening part of present day consumer courts to
uphold the grievances, agony and strive for a transparent method of essen al commodi es,
services reaches the consumers and keep the service providers as well as manufacturers,
marketers at bay. Corrup ons at all stages let those traders to go scot free and unpunished. Hence
the need of the consumer rights awareness and legal remedies through consumer courts to help
the society’s welfare is much needed today as we pay for the products from our hard earned
money and we should get its worth. We have been all along mute spectators to those malprac ces,
fraudulence trade prac ces so for and it is me to me this evil which spoils the society. The
present day techniques by many rms to mislead the customers by reduc on of weight, quality,
price di erences, worthless services, lack of a er sales service by ignoring customer’s complaints,
requests, and lethargic high handedness of monopoly prac ces.
It is our fundamental right to know about the safety, durability, worthiness of any product we buy.
There are many instances we insist for bills, records, warrantee cards and many mes they ignore
and it leads to black money transac ons, malprac ces and what not. Every product has to be
displayed with date of manufacturing, weight measurements, Maximum Retail Price (M.R.P.) and
warnings of its misuse. Although there are number of laws introduced and s ll the traders nd it
easy to dodge and ul mately we are the su erers. Right from the beginning we have been cheated
by wrong informa on, higher pricing, a er sales service. With regard to service providers, they
take advantage of our urgency and exploit us. The recent methods to reduce the weight and
maintaining its price by biscuit manufactures, cases of cement bags sold with lesser contents, the
medical services by those corporate & private hospitals, exorbitant tui on fees, capita ons fees by
educa onal ins tu ons and do we have any say on their terms. Parking lot woes are another area
of disturbing for every motorist; do they charge a uniform rate. Every day we are deprived of our
mental peace and forced to tensions due to unfair prac ces by the trade & services as well as
losing our valuable funds in turn. Purchase of consumer goods and essen al commodi es always
bring us bi er experiences and regret. This has to be changed. Monopolies and Restricted Prac ces
Act, 1969 is yet to serve us our goals and needs. The reason is that we are afraid and do not take it
seriously to redress our grievances due to lack of knowledge about consumer forums, delays in
claims and our well known Indian willingness to keep quiet and not to complain. Many countries
have been able to redress the customer’s complaints and the awareness through constant
consumer educa ons.
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 RECOMMENDATIONS
The recommenda ons focus on:

• De ning the objec ves and strategies of consumer educa on and evalua ng outcomes.
• Selec ng the most appropriate approach in consumer educa on.
• Improving co-opera on and co-ordina on among stakeholders.
• Addi onal recommenda ons on educa on to promote sustainable consump on and digital
competence.

Consumers today operate in increasingly complex markets, challenged by growing amounts of

informa on and an expanding choice of products. Making good choices and protec ng their
interests require a wider range of skills and knowledge. Consumer educa on is cri cal in this
regard; it can be de ned as a process of developing and enhancing skills and knowledge to make
informed and well reasoned choices that take societal values and objec ves into account.
Consumer educa on can help develop cri cal thinking and raise awareness, thereby enabling
consumers to become more pro-ac ve. It is also an important vehicle for building the con dence
that consumers need to operate increasingly in complex markets.

Today consumer educa on covers more diverse areas than it has in the past. It now covers, for
example, consumer rights and obliga ons, personal nance, sustainable consump on, and digital
media and technology. Such educa on should be viewed as a long-term and con nuous process
that develops be er decision making and skills throughout consumers’ lives.

[ BIBLIOGRAPHY ]
REFERENCES:-
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KHXEvDEoQ_AUICygC&biw=1280&bih=694#imgrc=_
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7. https://indiankanoon.org/search/?formInput=consumer%20protection%20act%201986
8. https://www.lawctopus.com/academike/consumer-awareness/
9. http://www.emeraldinsight.com/doi/abs/10.1108/02634500510624147
10.https://www.scribd.com/interest/Consumer-Protection/explore
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