Q.Project Work:

1. Visit a consumer organisation in your town. List down the various functions performed by it.
2. Collect some newspaper cuttings of some consumer cases and the rulings given therein.

A completed project file in two parts.

• Part 1 — a consumer organisation's functions: a voluntary Consumer Guidance Society educates consumers about their rights and responsibilities, publishes guides and tests products, gives legal advice and helps file complaints in consumer courts, takes up cases of exploitation, and runs awareness campaigns.
• Part 2 — consumer cases and rulings: cases such as a defective phone (replacement + compensation), a cancelled booking with no refund (refund + interest), or a misleading advertisement (order to stop it + compensate) — each heard by the District, State or National …

Part 1 — Visit to a consumer organisation: functions it performs

The organisation studied for this project is a voluntary Consumer Guidance Society — a

registered non-government organisation that works for consumer welfare. The main functions it

performs are:

• Educating consumers about their rights (safety, information, choice, redressal) and their responsibilities as buyers.
• Publishing magazines, pamphlets and guides, and testing products so buyers can compare quality and price independently.
• Providing legal advice and aid — helping aggrieved consumers draft complaints and pursue them in the consumer courts.
• Filing complaints on behalf of consumers and taking up cases of exploitation, unfair trade practices and misleading advertisements.
• Creating awareness through campaigns, talks and stalls, and encouraging consumers to insist on cash memos, standard marks (ISI, Agmark, Hallmark) and fair treatment.

On the visit I noted the society's name, when it was set up, the helplines it runs and which of

these functions it is most active in — a real visit lets you confirm and add to this list.

Part 2 — Consumer cases and the rulings given

Consumer disputes are heard by a three-tier redressal machinery under the Consumer

Protection Act, 2019. Which forum hears a case depends on the value of the goods or services

claimed:

The following cases (of the kind reported in newspapers) were collected and analysed. For each,

the complaint, the forum, and the ruling are recorded:

1. Defective product. A consumer bought a new mobile phone that stopped working within a month; the seller refused to replace it. Forum: District Commission (value under ₹50 lakh). Ruling: the seller was directed to replace the handset and pay compensation for the harassment caused.
2. Deficient service. A traveller's confirmed train/flight booking was cancelled by the service provider without a refund. Forum: District Commission. Ruling: refund of the fare with interest, plus costs, was ordered. …