Piyush Goyal ceremonially inaugurated a number of initiatives taken by the Department of Consumer Affairs (DoCA), Government of India, at a function organized in Mumbai today. The programme centered on this year’s theme "Fair and Responsible AI for Consumers". It reflected DoCA’s primary thrust on deployment of technology with an aim to raise awareness about the importance of ethical and transparent use of Artificial Intelligence (AI) in the realm of consumer affairs to revolutionize how goods and services are accessed, consumed, and evaluated.
The various initiatives launched on the occasion are as follows:
- Launch of Video Conferencing Facility in the State Consumer Disputes Redressal Commission: It enhances Consumer Protection Act 2019's e-filing provisions. The e-jagriti portal facilitates consumers' easy e-filing of complaints for the speedy and hassle-free resolution of their complaints. Video conferencing (Hybrid mode) is currently operational in Chandigarh, Punjab, Haryana, Maharashtra and Delhi.
- Launch Dissemination of Indian Standard Time through NTP: Now it will enable all mobile service providers to synchronize with Indian Standard Time (IST). This will also aid in synchronizing real-time applications in strategic sectors for national security. The Legal Metrology Division, Department of Consumer Affairs (DoCA), resolved to disseminate time through its Regional Reference Standard Laboratory (RRSL) in collaboration with the National Physical Laboratory (NPL), New Delhi, and the Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO).
- A state-of-the-art Integrated Power Transmission Line Equipment Testing Facility established in collaboration with the Bureau of Indian Standards at the National Testing Laboratory, Manda, Jaipur, Rajasthan
- Integrated Price Monitoring Dashboard - The Dashboard will provide with data visualization and analytics along with monitoring the daily retail and wholesale prices of 22 essential food commodities through 550 price monitoring centers set up in 34 states/UT. The dashboard is built as multiple pages with each page serving a specific purpose.
- Grant of the first certificate by India as an OIML certification agency: DoCA has become one of the 14 OIML issuing authorities and 27 Test Laboratories in the OIML- CS (Certification system) and can issue OIML certificates which are accepted all over the world. On this momentous day, RRSL, Ahmedabad issued the first OIML certificate to Tokheim India Pvt. Ltd.
- Launch of CCPA website for seamless redressal of violation of consumers rights as class: The website will enable swift and hassle free filing of complaints by the consumers on class action basis, while also allowing them to choose nature of case, description of the complaint, upload relevant documents/videos and track the progress of their complaint online, in the comfort of their own homes. Further, the website serves as a unified platform to access several advisories, guidelines and orders passed by CCPA which are detrimental to the rights of consumers.
Two books which were released by Union Minister Shri Goyal are:
- “Consumer Protection and Legal Metrology in Ancient India: Ancient Thoughts and Wisdom”: The book is a joint effort of Centre for Indian Economic History, SRCC, India’s premier Higher Education Institution in the field of commerce, economics, management and Department of Consumer Affairs.
- “The Consumer Journey” Book 1 &2 by Amar Chitra Katha prepared in collaboration with DoCA: The central idea of the book is to raise awareness amongst young minds and empower children. These booklets not only entertain children but also serve as a medium for understanding consumer rights and responsibilities.
