ACKNOWLEDGEMENT

I truly acknowledge my school, Paavai

vidhyashram senior secondary school for giving
me an honour to do this project. I express my
faithful regards to my respected director
Dr.C. Sathish and my social science teacher
Mrs.Geetha Nair M.A., B.Ed., who have been
guiding and inspiring me throughout my project.
I also acknowledge the contribution of my friends
in completing the project .I am deeply thankful to
my parents for providing me all the materials
required and supporting me with all possible help.
 CONSUMER AWARENESS

What do you mean by consumer awareness?

Consumer Awareness is an act of making sure the buyer

or consumer is aware of the information about products, goods,
services, and consumers rights. Consumer awareness is important so
that buyer can take the right decision and make the right choice.

Why do we need consumer awareness?

The consumer education and awareness motivate people not to

purchase such goods which are very harmful for them. ...
Through consumer awareness they are also made known to the
proceedings of laws so that they can solve their problems.
Forms of consumer exploitation:
Consumer exploitation is a type of exploitation in which the consumers
are exploited or cheated by the business community in terms of poor
quality of product, underweight, under-measurement, duplicate articles
etc

Some of the common ways by which the consumers are exploited by the
business community are as follows:

 Underweight and under-measurement

 Sub-standard quality
 High prices
 Duplicate articles
 Adulteration and impurity
 Lack of safety devices
 Artificial scarcity
 False and incomplete information
 Unsatisfactory after sale services
 Rough behaviour.

Factors causing exploitation of the Consumers:

The following are the factors that cause the exploitation of consumers:

1. Limited information
2. Limited supply
3. Limited competition
4. Low literacy
Rights and Duties of The Consumers
Rights of the Consumers
The following are the rights of the consumers as coded in the Indian laws, which the
business community has to keep in mind:

Right to Safety

Means right to be protected against the marketing of goods and services, which are
hazardous to life and property. The purchased goods and services availed of should
not only meet their immediate needs, but also fulfil long term interest

Right to choose

The definition of Right to Choose as per the Consumer Protection Act 1986 is 'the
right to be assured, wherever possible, to have access to a variety of goods and
services at competitive prices. Right to seek redressal

Right to consumer education

Means the right to acquire the knowledge and skill to be an

informed consumer throughout life. Ignorance of consumers, particularly of
rural consumers, is mainly responsible for their exploitation. They should know
their rights and must exercise them.

Right to be heard

Means that consumer's interests will receive due consideration at appropriate forums.
It also includes right to be represented in various forums formed to consider the
consumer's welfare. The Consumers should form non-political and non-commercial
consumer organizations which can be given representation in various committees
formed by the Government and other bodies in matters relating to consumers.

Right to be informed.

Means right to be informed about the quality, quantity, potency, purity, standard and price of
goods so as to protect the consumer against unfair trade practices. Consumer should insist
on getting all the information about the product or service before making a choice or a decision.
This will enable him to act wisely and responsibly and also enable him to desist from falling
prey to high pressure selling techniques.
Right to seek redressal

Means right to seek redressal against unfair trade practices or unscrupulous

exploitation of consumers. It also includes right to fair settlement of the genuine
grievances of the consumer. Consumers must make complaint for their genuine
grievances. Many a times their complaint may be of small value but its impact on the
society as a whole may be very large. They can also take the help of consumer
organisations in seeking redressal of their grievances.

Duties of the Consumers:

In order to secure rights, consumers have to fulfill the following duties:

 While purchasing goods, consumers should look

at the quality of the products as well as on the
warranty of the product.
 They should ask for Cash Memo for the item
purchased.
 They should form consumer awareness
organizations.
 They must complain for their genuine grievances.
 The must know their rights and duties.
 Consumer Protection Measures
Introduction
In order to protect the interest of the consumers, the government has adopted three
strategies:

1. Administrative measures

1. Technical measures

1. Legislative measures

Administrative Measures
Administrative measures of the government include the distribution of essential
commodities through Public Distribution System (PDS). PDS is a system
through which the government distributes some essential commodities at a
reasonable price through the Fair Price Shop. In a free market economy, the
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 are zero excess
demand and excess supply. But sometimes government interferes in the market
systems by fixing 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 the government fixes price lower than the
equilibrium price, demand exceeds supply, which leads to black-marketing and
hoarding. To check these government sales different commodities at different
FPS at control price.

Technical Measures
Technical measures consist of Standardization of the product. One of the
important measures taken by the government to protect the consumers is the
creation of institutions for setting up the standards for making and producing
various products and enforcing them. In India, this has been achieved through
the 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

Institution (ISI), whose headquarter is located at Delhi, has the responsibility of
lying down the standards for industrial and consumer goods on a scientific basis
and certifying the goods that meet the standards and the prescribed quality.
The Agmark is implemented under the Agricultural Produce (Grading and
Marketing) Act of 1937, as amended in 1986. This scheme is run by
the Directorate of Marketing and Intelligence (DMI) in the Ministry of
Agriculture, Government of India. Products such as honey, masala etc, carry
such marks.

At the international level, an institution called International Organization for

Standardization (ISI), established in 1947 located at Geneva, serves to
provide such a common reference standard. All the international Companies,
goods produced by them, and institutions are certified as ISO 6000, ISO
14000 etc.

For setting international food standards, there is a similar body called Codex
Alimentaries Commission (CAC). This was formed in 1963 by the Food and
Agricultural Organization (FAO) and the World Health Organization
(WHO), located at Rome, Italy. It develops food standards, guidelines and
codes for production and international trade in food products like milk, fish etc.

Legislative Measures
Legislative measures include enactment of Consumer Protection Act,
1986. The Government enacted a specific law called the Consumer Protection
Act, 1986. The Act provides for the establishment of consumer disputes
redressal agencies at District, State and National level for the protection of
consumer interests and to redress their grievances in a speedy, simple and
inexpensive manner. The Act has led to the setting up separate Department of
Consumer Affairs in Central and State Government, which focus exclusively
on the rights of the consumers, as enshrined in the act.
Consumer Protection Act of 1986
And Case Studies
4.1. Consumer Protection Act of 1986
The industrial revolution and the development in the international 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 advertisement of goods and
services in T.V and other media influence the demand of same by the
consumers, though there may be manufacturing defects or shortcomings in
quality and purity of products or deficiency in services rendered. In spite of
various provisions made providing protection to the consumers against
adulterated and sub-standard articles in different enactments like Code of Civil
Procedure, 1908, MRTP ACT, 1969, IPC, 1960 etc., very little could be
achieved in the field of consumer protection.

In order to provide for the better protection of the interest of the consumers,
Consumer Protection Bill 1986 was introduced in Lok Sabha on 5th December
1986. The Bill was passed by both Houses of Parliament and got the assent of
the President on 24 December 1986, popularly known as the Consumer
Protection Act of 1986.

The Act of 1986, seeks to provide better protection to the interests of the
consumers and for the purpose that there is Consumer Councils and other
authorities for the settlement of consumer disputes and for matter connected
therewith. To provide quick redressal of consumer disputes, a quasi-judicial
institution is set up at all the three levels. These bodies have been empowered
to give relief of a specific nature and to award, wherever appropriate,
compensation to the consumers. Penalties of non-compliance of the orders
given by the quasi-judicial bodies have also been provided.

Case Studies
1. S.L. Pati VS. Postmaster, Aligarh, Orissa (1993)

Money order not delivered in time to the concerned person is a case f deficiency
in service of worst category. If this would be the normal act of the Post Office
and the office, 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 compensation
awarded to the deprived person.

2. K.C. Panda VS SDO, Telecom Department, Berhampur, Orissa (1994)

The telephone line was disconnected even if the 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 compensation awarded to the person concerned by the Telecom
Department.

What are Goods and Services Covered Under CPA,

1986?
1. The term 'goods' under this Act has the same meaning as under the sale
of goods Act.

2. Accordingly, it covers all types of movable property other than money

and includes stocks and shares, growing crops etc.

3. The term 'service' means service of any description made available to

potential users and includes banking, financing, housing construction,
insurance, entertainment, transport, supply of electrical and other
energy, boarding and lodging, amusement, etc.

4. The services of doctors, engineers, architects, lawyers etc are included

under the provisions of Consumer Protection Act.

5. Here Consumer Protection Act refers to provide better and allround

protection to consumers and effective safeguards against different types
of exploitation such as defective goods, deficient services and unfair
trade practices. It also makes provisions for simple, speedy and inexpensive
machinery for redressal of consumer's grievances.
 How to file a complaint?

 A dissatisfied consumer can file a complaint directly with

the national commission or appeal against decisions of the
state commission within a month from the date of the
order. The court fee is Rs 5,000 and the demand draft
should be in the name of The Registrar,
National Consumer Disputes Redressal Commission.

How to approach district consumer Forum:

The complaint can be made on plain paper and you can file it in person or
through an authorised agent, after it has been notarised, through registered
post or regular post. It is important that you serve a personal or legal notice to
the opposite party before filing the complaint.
You will need to file four copies, plus additional copies for each opposite
party. And the complaint must be filed within two years from the date of the
cause of action having arisen. The court fee for cases involving up to Rs 1
lakh is nil for those holding Antyodaya Anna Yojana cards and Rs 100 for the
rest. For cases involving up to Rs 5 lakh the case fee is Rs 200, for case up to
Rs 10 lakh the court fee is Rs 400 and for those up to Rs 20 lakh the case fee
is Rs 500. The demand draft should be made out to the President, Consumer
Disputes Redressal Forum, (name of) district.

How to approach state consumer Forum

Cases where the value of goods or services exceeds Rs 20 lakh can be filed
and orders of the district forum challenged here within 30 days of the order
being passed.
The court fee for cases above Rs 20 lakh and up to Rs 50 lakh is Rs 2,000
while the court fee for cases up to Rs 1 crore is Rs 4,000. The demand draft
should be made in favour of the registrar, (name of) state commission and be
payable in that state only. To file an appeal you need the following:

a) Documents of record with correct name of all parties and their addresses;
(b) Certified copy of the district forum order;
(c) More than four additional copies for each respondent for filing an appeal;
 (d) Any conditional delay, interim orders and other petitions to be submitted along
with an affidavit; and
(e) A statutory deposit of Rs 25,000 or 50 per cent of the award / compensation
amount, whichever is less, is to be made by the appellant / opposite parties.

How to approach National Consumer Disputes Redressal Commission

A dissatisfied consumer can file a complaint directly with the national commission or
appeal against decisions of the state commission within a month from the date of the
order. The court fee is Rs 5,000 and the demand draft should be in the name of The
Registrar, National Consumer Disputes Redressal Commission. There is no fee for
filing an appeal before the state or national commission. You can appeal against the
orders of the national commission in the Supreme Court within a period of 30 days.

RELIEFS AVAILABLE TO CONSUMERS

Under this Act, the remedies available to consumers are as

follows:
 Removal of Defects.
 Replacement of Goods.
 Refund of Price.
 Award of Compensation.
 Removal of Deficiency in Service.
 Discontinuance of Unfair/Restrictive Trade Practice.
 Stopping the Sale of Hazardous Goods.
 Withdrawal of Hazardous Goods from the Market.
 Payment of Adequate Cost.
NEED FOR CONSUMER
PROTECTION:
1.We need physical protection of the consumer, for example
protection against products that are unsafe or dangerous to his
health and welfare.
2.Consumer want protection against deceptive and unfair trade and
market practices.

3. Consumers protection is needed against all types of pollution so

that they can enjoy a healthy environment-free from water, air and
food pollution.

4. Consumer protection is also needed against the abuse of

monopolistic and restrictive trade practices. Protection delayed is
protection denied.

On the one hand consumers, particularly in India, are unorganised,

illiterate and ignorant, poor and backward, relatively uninformed
and above all they still have the traditional outlook and attitude to
suffer in silence. On the other side, businessmen and traders are
organised, well-informed, intelligent and competent sellers. The
negative sides of our life have enabled unscrupulous businessmen to
exploit consumers in India.
POINTS FOR CONSUMER ATTENTION
A)PURCHASING UNDER PUBLIC DISTRIBUTION SYSTEM
Public Distribution System Outlets (ration shops) are distributing commodities
against family cards at subsidized rates. Consumer should ensure that
•Commodities are provided in correct weight
without denial
•Display board is placed in front of every shop
indicating available commodities and their quantity with selling price of each
product
•Samples of commodities are placed for notice
of card holders
•In the absence of any of above complaint can
be made to Civil Supplies and Consumer Protection Department, Government
of Tamil Nadu
b) PURCHASE OF COSMETICS
While buying cosmetics consumer should
•Not be carried away through Colorful misleading
advertisements
•Check manufacturing date and date of expiry
•keep in mind that Colours are almost Chemicals
•keep in mind that following statements are mostly
false “100% Natural”, “Chemicals not used”, “Oil free”
•Consult other users
c) PURCHASE OF DRUGS
•Purchase to be made only as per prescription by Registered
Medical Practitioner - Self medication is dangerous
•Checking for manufacturing date / expiry date •Checking
name of medicine purchased with prescription
•Checking availability of Maximum Retail Price on the
strips / containers
•Insisting for bill with details of batch number etc. printed
over strips / containers
•Checking for dosage and perseverance details of
medicines
d) PURCHASE OF CLOTHS
•Checking whether cloths withstand normal washing habits
•Insisting and obtaining bills and preserving them
•Insisting for “silk mark” while purchasing costly silk
sarees
 •If you have any grievance you may send a notice to the
seller/manufacturer or file a petition in the District Consumer Forum
e) PURCHASE OF GOLD
•Checking for “Hall Mark”
•Weight of stones to be separately noted down in bills while
purchasing ornaments with precious stones
•Obtaining purchase bills and keeping it safely
f) MISLEADING ADVERTISEMENTS
Consumer should always
•be alert about the advertisements while going for purchase
of goods afresh or in exchange of old product
•not be carried away by statements like free offers /
discounts etc. since they are not the deciding factors for the requirement of
consumers
•not be misled through colourful glamorous
advertisements.

CONSUMER AWARENESS
PROGRAMME:

This campaign is an unfunded initiative of Balajee Sewa

Sansthan, in our effort to educate the consumers about their
rights. The market is constantly being flooded with new
products and services, making it difficult for consumers to
choose the right products . Consumer awareness is about
asking questions, to learn the specifics of a product or service.
It is about comparing products and services from different
sellers to learn more information. It is about having the freedom
to choose what best suits consumer needs and will not harm
the consumer. Consumers are not without rights and consumer
awareness is about advancing these rights.
This campaign is an unfunded initiative of Balajee Sewa
Sansthan, in our effort to educate the consumers about their
rights. The market is constantly being flooded with new
products and services, making it difficult for consumers to
choose the right products . Consumer awareness is about
asking questions, to learn the specifics of a product or service.
It is about comparing products and services from different
sellers to learn more information. It is about having the freedom
to choose what best suits consumer needs and will not harm
the consumer. Consumers are not without rights and consumer
awareness is about advancing these rights.
Of late, we have been asking people to raise their voices
against such malpractices and ask for the right value of their
money. The NGO has been spreading the message on
consumer awareness and rights of the consumers in many
districts in Bihar and Uttarakhand. Financial literacy campaign
gave us an opportunity to talk to people in more than 200
villages and make them aware of misleading offers, especially
in investments’ and mutual funds.
SUMMARY AND CONCLUSION:
The objective of this project is to assess the people of different class in the society
about different aspects of consumer awareness viz., price and quality of products used
by them, about Fair Price Shop, standardization of products, about Consumer
Forum, about their Rights and Duties etc. Consumers will lead a happy, healthy and
prosper life if they fully aware about the above mentioned aspects.

For the project report, total number head of households interviewed is 80 and all
belong to urban area. Out of total head of family interviewed, 78 are literate whereas
only 2 are illiterate. All belong to different income group i.e. high, medium and low
income group. However, majority of them belong to medium
income group(75%). Again, on the basis of occupation, 85% of respondents are
government servants whereas other are businessmen.

Close-
up is the most preferred brand(37.5%) of toothpaste followed by Colgate(27.5%)
among the surveyed households. Households from medium and high income group
prefer respective brand of toothpaste taking into account the quality of the product
and wishes of their children also. On the other hand, for the low income group, the
most important factor that determines the use of toothpaste is the price of the product.
Again, majority of respondent(70%) are influenced by the advertisement about the
product and the important media is Television.

As far as consumer awareness is concerned, majority of respondents have

knowledge about certified products, check MRP, date of manufacturing and expiry at
the time of purchase. However majority of them do not check about the ingredients
used in the product. On the other hand, majority of them have the knowledge
of Consumer Courts, but out of total respondents only 10 have ever gone to the
Consumer Courts for complaining about different commodities
they purchased and consumed. Lastly, it is evident
from the study that, majority of them insist for Cash Memo at the time of
purchase, but, it is limited to consumer durable goods and for consumer non-
durable goods when large quantities of goods is purchased.

To conclude, people are concerned about different aspects of

consumer awareness i.e. their rights and duties, certified products, MRP,
date of manufacturing and expiry of the products they used, Consumer Courts etc
as far as urban area is concerned.

Educational implications of the study is that every students as well as parents should
be aware about different aspects of different commodities they consume in day-to-
day life. They should have knowledge about certified products, Check MRP, date of
manufacturing, and expiry at the time of purchase of a commodity. They must have
awareness about their rights and duties. This project report will give a
preliminary idea about survey work to the students. Lastly, students will get an
idea about how statistical techniques can be used in different socio-economic
problems.