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Meaning : A consumer disputes redressal agency at state level established by each State Government is known as State Commission.

Composition : 

Each State Commission shall consist of:

(a) President : A person who is or has been a Judge of a High Court, shall be appointed by the State Government as the president of the State Commission in consultation with the Chief Justice of the High Court.

(b) Members : The number of other members shall not be less than 4 or not more than such number of members as may be prescribed in consultation with the Central Government.

(c) Tenure : Every member of the state commission shall hold office for a term of 5 years or up to the age of 67 years whichever is earlier.

Public Interest Litigation (Janahit Yachika) : As name indicates it is a legal action initiated in a court of law in regard to a matter of general public interest. Under this, any person can approach a court of law in the interest of the public and ask for justice. It does not involve individual interest but interest of unrepresented groups of the society. After studying and verifying the case, the court gives justice which will benefit the specific group of society or entire society. It can be filed by any party which may not be related to grievance. In some cases Janahit Yachika can be filed in the High Court as well as in Supreme Court directly.

(1) Meaning : A consumer redressal agency established by the State Government in each district to give relief or settle the disputes of consumers who complain against manufacturers or traders, is called District Commission.

(2) Territorial Jurisdiction : District Commission can exercise its jurisdiction within the limits of its district.

(3) Monetary jurisdiction : District Commission has the jurisdiction to entertain complaints where the value of goods and services, including compensation, if any, does not exceed Rs 1 crore.

(4) Appeal : Any person not satisfied with the order of District Commission can appeal against it to the State Commission within 45 days from the date of the order in such form and manner may be prescribed.

It is the responsibility of a consumer that he must obtain Invoice as a proof for the purchase of goods.

District Commission, State Commission, National Commission.

• ECOMARK is a certification mark given by the Department of Environment, Government of India to products conforming to a set of standards aimed at the least impact on the ecosystem.
• Industrial units producing products with such standards are allowed to use ECOMARK on their products.
• Consumers aware about environment protection will be inclined to use products carrying ECOMARK. This will in turn motivate more industries to start producing environment friendly products.

i. Supreme Court

ii. Central Government

iii. Lok Adalat

iv. consumers

v. District Commission.

Correct option is (D) Supreme Court

(c) Consumer satisfaction

According to the Consumer Protection Act,“A consumer is a person who receives goods or services against an exchange, who pays or agrees to compensate partly or fully or promises to compensate on a future date or has participated in some future payment plan. Any user of the product or service who uses it on the basis of the permission of the purchaser is a consumer. But the one who purchases on a resale basis or for further production is not included under the definition of a consumer.”

No. It can be challenged in the State Commission.

• Products that cause least harm to the environment are called eco-friendly products.
• Industrial units producing products with such standards are allowed to use ECOMARK on their products.
• Today’s consumer is getting aware about consumer protection and so in coming times he will prefer product having ECOMARK. As a result, industries will have to start producing environment friendly products.

(b) State Commission

i. Centred

ii. State Commission

iii. four

iv. Supreme Court

v. ten crore

vi. three

Correct option is (C) National Level

National commission has 4 members in addition to the president.

Explanation: 

The National Commission, a consumer dispute redressal forum, consists of a president and a minimum of four other members, one of whom should be a woman.

Five members: a president & four members including one women member.

Right to Safety:

(i) Right to be protected against goods and services which are hazardous to life and health.

(ii) Right to get protection against the risks caused due to the use of substandard products or products that do not conform to the safety norms.

Right to be Heard:

(i) The consumer has right to file a complaint and to be heard in case of dissatisfaction with a product or a service.

(ii) It is because of this reason many firms have set up their own consumer service and grievance cells.

Right to Safety:

(i) Right to be protected against goods and services which are hazardous to life and health.

(ii) Right to get protection against the risks caused due to the use of substandard products or products that do not conform to the safety norms.

Right to be Informed:

(i) The consumer has a right to have complete information about the product he intends to buy such as ingredients, date of manufacturing, price, quantity, etc.

(ii) It is because of this reason that the legal framework in India requires the manufacturers to provide such information on the package and label of the product.

Right to Choose:

(i) The consumer has the freedom to choose from a variety of products at competitive prices.

(ii) Marketers should offer a wide variety of product in terms of quality, price, size etc. to enable the consumer to make the choice.

Right to Consumer Education:

(i) The consumer has the right to acquire knowledge and to be a well informed consumer.

(iii) He should be aware about his rights and the reliefs available to him in case of a product or service falling short of his expectations.

Consumer is the king of modem marketing.

• Consumer exploitation is quite rampant these days.
• Even if a consumer knows he is been cheated, he is not able to raise his voice many a times due to his ignorance or frustration or fear to stand up and fight for his rights.
• When the producer or seller is strong and has high reputation as well as political power, the consumer may fear to fight him. Moreover, his single voice may not be even heard.
• In such cases, a single consumer may find himself weak, but if consumers unite, they can become more powerful and fight against the injustice done to consumers.
• The group can form a consumer protection forum. The forum can fight for the right of all those consumers who get cheated and it will be easier and effective, to protect the interests of the consumers.
• Hence, it can be rightly said that if consumers unite, they can stand together but if they divide, they might fall i.e. they may be deprived of justice.

Consumer Protection Act, 1986 is an Act of the Parliament of India enacted in 1986 to protect the interests of the consumers in India. Of the various measures adopted for consumer protection, Consumer Protection Act is the most important one.

Right to choose restricts monopolistic tendencies in the market.

Explanation: 

The right to choose enables consumers to select from a variety of goods and services at competitive prices. The right ensures that the consumers are not compelled to purchase a good or service from only one seller. The consumer is free to choose the product he/she wants to buy from whichever place he/she prefers.

The Consumer Protection Act, 1986.

Maximum amount of compensation that can be claimed in District consumer forum should not exceed 20 Lakhs

Consumers aware about environment protection will be inclined to use products carrying ECOMARK or say eco-friendly products. This will motivate more industries to start producing environment friendly products.

i. NGO

ii. Commissioner

Right to Seek Redressal:

(i) The consumer has a right to get relief in case the product or service falls short of his expectations.

(ii) The Consumer Protection Act provides relief to customers such as replacement of product, removal of defect in the product, compensation for any loss or injury suffered by the consumer.

Right to be Informed:

(i) The consumer has a right to have complete information about the product he intends to buy such as ingredients, date of manufacturing, price, quantity, etc.

(ii) It is because of this reason that the legal framework in India requires the manufacturers to provide such information on the package and label of the product.

Correct option is (B) 5

Right to Seek Redressal:

(i) The consumer has a right to get relief in case the product or service falls short of his expectations.

(ii) The Consumer Protection Act provides relief to customers such as replacement of product, removal of defect in the product, compensation for any loss or injury suffered by the consumer.

Right to Consumer Education:

(i) The consumer has the right to acquire knowledge and to be a well informed consumer.

(iii) He should be aware about his rights and the reliefs available to him in case of a product or service falling short of his expectations.

Consumers can unite and file collective complaint to exert more pressure on authorities. Consumers can also form consumer forums to fight for various consumers.

The act of providing shield to consumer from the unethical, exploitative and unlawful practices of sellers or manufacturers is called consumer protection.

Consumer is the king of the market in a free market system.

i. True

ii. False

iii. False

iv. True

v. False

Classification of consumer exploitation:
There are mainly three types of consumer exploitation.

They are:

1. Physical and mental exploitation:

• If the consumer is fooled or forced to purchase a sub-standard quality or a duplicate product, then it leads to mental agony as well as physical loss.
• Getting disappointed, angry and frustrated and feeling cheated are forms of mental exploitation that the consumer faces whereas loss of money, adverse effect on human body by using the product, etc. are the form of physical loss or physical exploitation.

2. Economic exploitation: If the seller is following malpractices such as hoarding of goods, black marketing and charging higher price than the printed price then it is called economic exploitation of the consumer. The consumer has to pay higher prices for purchasing hoarded or black-marketed goods.

3. Against public interest: Public interest is not safeguarded when some products are produced by using certain materials which can cause harm to environment.

i. District Commission

ii. Public Interest Litigation

iii. Non-Government Organizations

iv. Right to Safety

v. Consumer.

Correct option is (B) Physical

Right to be Informed:

(i) The consumer has a right to have complete information about the product he intends to buy such as ingredients, date of manufacturing, price, quantity, etc.

(ii) It is because of this reason that the legal framework in India requires the manufacturers to provide such information on the package and label of the product.

Right to Seek Redressal:

(i) The consumer has a right to get relief in case the product or service falls short of his expectations.

(ii) The Consumer Protection Act provides relief to customers such as replacement of product, removal of defect in the product, compensation for any loss or injury suffered by the consumer.

Right to Choose:

(i) The consumer has the freedom to choose from a variety of products at competitive prices.

(ii) Marketers should offer a wide variety of product in terms of quality, price, size etc. to enable the consumer to make the choice.

In most of the cases, consumers either do not have the capacity to unite and become aware or do not have information regarding the legal measures and consumer rights. This leads to consumer exploitation.

(a) Mental exploitation: Getting disappointed, angry and frustrated and feeling cheated

(b) Physical exploitation: Loss of money, adverse effect on human body by using the product, etc.

Correct option is (C) Economic

Correct option is (C) Economic exploitation.

The right of a consumer which creates awareness in him about his rights - Right to education 

Explanation: 

The right to education makes consumers educated and aware about the rights they can exercise and the remedies available to them in case of exploitation. Consumers are educated through several means including newspapers and TV or radio advertisements given by government or other organisations.

Lok Adalat:

• Lok Adalat or People’s Court is India’s innovative contribution to the world for resolving cases quickly.
• The concept of Lok Adalat was started in Gujarat.
• It is an effective way to provide speedy and economical justice to the poor, weak and exploited section of the society.
• Generally, the Lok Adalats hear cases related to accident and its compensation, divorce, alimony, general debts, personal complaints, police complaints, etc.
• Lok Adalats consist of advocates, social workers, educationalists, reputed citizens, businessmen, police officers, insurance officers, judges and judicial officers.
• The Lok Adalats try to solve the cases amicably in such a way that both the parties get satisfied.

Basic Right says that every person is entitled to basic needs such as adequate food, water, clothing, shelter and health care required for survival.

Correct option is (D) None of these

• A lot of work has been done in the field of consumer awareness.
• Rise in education has resulted in an increase in consumer awareness regarding their rights.
• Consumer rights have been included in the syllabus of school and college.
• Government has also made necessary changes in the laws.
• Government publishes several advertisements in the newspaper to educate the consumers.
  Government is making effort for speedily solving the cases in consumer courts.
• Several NGOs and other organizations are also putting a lot of effort to help the consumers.

They are as follows:

i. Consumer must exercise his Rights

ii. Cautious Consumer/do not buy Blindly

iii. Filing complaint for the redressal of genuine grievances

iv. Consumer must be Quality Conscious/should not compromise on Quality

v. Advertisements Often Exaggerate/Beware of False Advertisement

vi. Do not forget to Get Receipt and Guarantee/Warranty Card