Consumer

Consumer Affairs Secretary Nidhi Khare on Friday said the department will soon issue guidelines for the prevention of spam calls and messages to safeguard consumers' interests. In June, the Department of Consumer Affairs came out with draft guidelines to address the issue of pesky/promotional or unsolicited commercial calls received by consumers. "The Department of Consumer Affairs had started working on prevention of pesky calls, and we had to engage with all the stakeholders in this," Khare told reporters on the sidelines of a CII event here. The Department of Telecommunications was also coming out with rules, he said, adding, "we slowed down because we wanted to actually give the sector regulator full powers". The secretary further said the telecom industry wants certain guidelines to be put out for safeguarding consumers' interest under the Consumer Protection Act. "We are working on it, and very soon we will come out with the guidelines for prevention of pesky calls," Khare .

Industry consensus at the meeting emphasised the need for ethical marketing practices and consistent terminology to enhance consumer protection

Evaluating corporate results through the lens of factors affecting consumer demand makes more sense than the reverse

Consumer protection regulator CCPA has issued notices to several quick commerce companies for failing to comply with mandatory product disclosure requirements, a top official said on Tuesday. The Central Consumer Protection Authority (CCPA) has given the companies 15 days to respond to the notices, CCPA Chief Commissioner Nidhi Khare told PTI, declining to name specific firms involved. The notices have been issued to "three to four" quick commerce companies for violations related to packaged product disclosures mandated under the Legal Metrology Act, said Khare, who also serves as the Consumer Affairs Secretary. The law requires online and offline retailers to display key product information, including maximum retail price, expiration date, weight, manufacturer details, and consumer grievance addresses on packaged goods. Quick commerce, which offers ultra-fast delivery of groceries and daily essentials, has gained significant traction in India's major cities, attracting consumers a

The government on Tuesday unveiled comprehensive guidelines to regulate greenwashing and misleading environmental claims by companies, aiming to protect consumers and promote transparency in eco-friendly marketing. Greenwashing refers to claims by companies about any product or service having climate-friendly impact. The new guidelines, issued by the consumer affairs ministry, aim to ensure that eco-friendly assertions are backed by verifiable evidence and clear disclosures. Briefing media, Consumer Affairs Secretary Nidhi Khare emphasized that the guidelines do not prohibit environmental claims but seek to ensure they are made with integrity and transparency. "The claims have to be supported by verifiable evidence and independent studies," the secretary said. For instance, terms like '100% eco-friendly', 'zero emissions', and 'cruelty-free' must now be substantiated with accurate and accessible qualifiers. The guidelines provide definitions for 'greenwashing' and 'environmental

Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal had said in August that the government is not opposed to e-commerce but is focused on ensuring fair competition between online and offline businesses

Pilot run on voluntary basis for selective sectors

The Indian gold industry on Tuesday announced the formation of the Indian Association for Gold Excellence and Standards (IAGES), a self-regulatory organisation (SRO) supported by the World Gold Council. The organisation aims to remove the trust deficit and enhance transparency within the sector. The framework for IAGES will be independently governed and professionally managed. It will be released soon, after which memberships will be announced. The organisation is expected to become operational by December this year or January 2025, WGC Regional CEO, India, Sachin Jain told PTI. IAGES will be formed by national industry associations, including the Indian Bullion and Jewellers Association (IBJA), All India Gems and Jewellery Council of India (GJC) and Gem and Jewellery Export Promotion Council (GJEPC). "IAGES, created by the Indian gold industry, represents the coming together of various stakeholders in the sector. It aims to increase consumer and government confidence by enhancing

The firm has 400 million phones/customers across the world who have Glance

India is the world's third-biggest oil importer and consumer. The data is a proxy for the country's oil demand

Officials in the Ministry of Finance have discussed proposals to reduce taxes for consumers with the highest propensity to spend

The majority of the respondents feel that there has been no reduction in frauds despite multiple regulatory changes in India, a KPMG survey said on Thursday. KPMG in India conducted a survey with more than 75 experts from the finance/ compliance domain in various organisations in the consumer markets sector (FMCG, consumer durables, agriculture, retail and e-commerce), covering questions about frauds and leakages faced by them. As many as 79 per cent of the survey respondents said there has been no reduction in frauds despite regulatory changes, and only 21 per cent responded by saying that frauds have been reduced due to the changes. As per the survey, procurement, sales and distribution and e-commerce were voted as the major areas prone to fraud. About 72 per cent of the respondents cited reputational damage as the most severe impact of fraud, whereas 16 per cent believed that financial losses would also impact organisations. Around 61 per cent of the respondents believed that .

Talking about the National Food Security Act, he said that a system has already been set in place, adding that he will work towards strengthening it

Drone manufacturer Garuda Aerospace Pvt Ltd has inaugurated its first exclusive drone showroom in the city as it plans to sell 50,000 agricultural and consumer drones in the next few years. The city-based company, backed by cricket legend Mahendra Singh Dhoni, has served over 750 clients across the country. In a statement on Tuesday, the company said it has received the Directorate General of Civil Aviation approval for manufacturing of small and medium drones. "We pride ourselves on the impactful intelligence our drone solutions have to offer. We have 750 + satisfied clients all around India with 350 finished projects and 50 designed works. Our team includes 200 plus employees, with a group of advisory board members, expertise heads for various departments, and well-versed pilots," company CEO Agnishwar Jayaprakash said in the statement. "Garuda Aerospace has sold 2,500 drones so far, out of which 2,000 are agri drones. We plan to sell 25,000 agri-drones in the next two years and

National Commission concluded that false and baseless allegations had been made in the complaint to claim a highly exaggerated and atrocious amount of compensation

The survey will be conducted through a collection of 8,000 blind samples from people roaming in places such as shopping malls, cinema halls, hotels, and restaurants across 26 cities in the country

The industry body argued that the utilization of such WiFi devices operating in the 6 GHz band will render customers responsible for these unauthorized transmissions, placing liability on consumers

Global technology major Dell Technologies is banking on gamers and college and school-going youth to drive its business this year, according to a senior company official. While launching new laptop models across XPS, Alienware and Inspiron portfolio, Dell Technologies Vice President and Managing Director for Consumer and Small Business Raj Kumar Rishi said that the company will stick to its strategy of bringing the latest technologies across various price points and focus on financing of laptops to make devices affordable for consumers. "Share of gaming in the PC segment has increased. We see gaming and college and school-going youth to continue driving growth for us," Rishi said. The company unveiled new XPS laptops with Intel Core Ultra 9 processor and Nvidia GeForce RTX 4060 GPU to support artificial intelligence applications. The company has priced two models of XPS featuring 16-inch and 14-inch displays at Rs 2.99 lakh and Rs 1.99 lakh apiece respectively. The company for the

The central bank and financial regulator said loan ratios for gasoline and electric passenger vehicles, including hybrids, can now be independently determined by lending institutions

The Fed must peer through the murk and assess which direction the economy is heading