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In NCERT Solutions Class 10 Economics Chapter 5, we have provided summarised notes of what you have learned in the chapter ‘Consumer Rights” with important points. These notes will help you recap the chapter within minutes and will serve you as a quick method of revision. Thereafter you will come across the solutions to the questions in the exercise following the chapter. All answers are following the latest CBSE Class 10 board exam curriculum. Let’s proceed!
Also Read: National Consumer Rights Day: Date, Theme, History, Importance, and Quotes
Table of Contents
The Consumer in the Marketplace
To begin with NCERT Solutions Class 10 Economics Chapter 5, we have summarised ‘The Consumer in the Marketplace’ section of the chapter Consumer Rights.
- Goods and Services are the final goods that people as consumers use.
- Rules and regulations are required to protect the environment.
- Many people who work in the unorganised sector have to work at a low wage and accept conditions that are not fair and are also often harmful to their health. To prevent such exploitation, rules and regulations are present.
- Similarly, rules and regulations are required for the protection of consumers in the marketplace.
- There is a need for rules and regulations to ensure protection for consumers.
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Consumer Movement
Furthermore, let us introduce you to the concept of consumer movement.
- It arose out of the dissatisfaction of the consumers as many unfair practices were being indulged in by the sellers.
- No legal system was present to protect consumer rights.
- The awareness that the consumer movement brought, shifted the responsibility of ensuring quality goods and services on the sellers.
- In India, the consumer movement as a ‘social force’ originated with the necessity of protecting and promoting the interests of consumers against unethical and unfair trade practices. Rampant food shortages, hoarding, black marketing, adulteration of food and edible oil gave birth to the consumer movement in an organised form in the 1960s.
- Because of all these efforts, the movement succeeded in bringing pressure on business firms as well as the government to correct business conduct which may be unfair and against the interests of consumers at large.
- In 1986, a major step was taken by the Indian government which was the enactment of the Consumer Protection Act 1986, popularly known as COPRA.
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Consumer Rights
In total, there are six consumer rights including:
- Right to be protected against marketing of goods and services which are hazardous to life and property.
- Right to be informed of the quality, quantity, potency, purity, standard and price of goods or services.
- Right to choose from a variety of goods or services at competitive prices.
- Right to seek redressal against unfair or restrictive trade practices.
- Right to represent.
Safety is Everyone’s Right
- While using many goods and services, we as consumers, have the right to be protected against the marketing of goods and delivery of services that are hazardous to life and property.
- The producers need to strictly follow the required safety rules and regulations.
- A public or government action is also important to assure quality maintenance.
Information about Goods and Services
- On food products, information regarding the date of manufacturing, date of expiry, etc is present. Similarly, on clothes and garments, instructions for washing and maintenance are present. All these are a result of the right to be informed.
- When we buy a product and find it defective well within the expiry period, we can ask for a replacement.
- In recent times, the right to information has been expanded to cover various services provided by the Government. In October 2005, the Government of India enacted a law, popularly known as the RTI (Right to Information) Act, which ensures its citizens all the information about the functions of government departments.
When the choice is denied
- Consumers can choose whether or not to continue receiving and service.
- Consumers have the right to choose between brands, services, goods, etc.
Where should consumers go to get justice?
- Consumers have the right to seek redressal against unfair trade practices and exploitation.
- Consumers are liable to get compensation if any damage is
- The consumer can file a complaint before the appropriate consumer forum on his/her own with or without the services of lawyers. done to them.
- These days consumers as individuals or as a group (called class action suits) file a complaint both Physically or through the Internet and conduct the case through video conferencing.
- The consumer movement in India has led to the formation of various organisations, locally known as consumer forums or consumer protection councils. They guide consumers on how to file cases in the Consumer Disputes Redressal Commissions. Under COPRA, a three-tier quasi-judicial machinery at the district, state and national levels was set up for redressal of consumer disputes.
- District Consumer Disputes Redressal Commission deals with cases involving claims up to Rs 1 crore.
- The state-level Consumer Disputes Redressal Commission called State Commission deals with cases involving claims between Rs 1 crore and Rs 10 crore.
- The national-level commission — National Commission — deals with cases involving claims exceeding Rs 10 crore.
- This all comes under the right to represent.
Learning to Become Well-informed Consumers
- After knowing our consumer rights, we will be able to discriminate and make informed choices.
- The enactment of COPRA has led to the setting up of separate Departments of Consumer Affairs in central and state governments.
Taking the Consumer Movement Forward
- 24th December is observed as National Consumers’ Day.
- On this day the Indian Parliament enacted the Consumer Protection Act in 1986.
- There are today more than 2000 consumer groups in the country of which only about 50-60 are well organized and recognized for their work.
- The consumer redressal process is becoming cumbersome, expensive, and time-consuming.
- The COPRA was amended in the year 2019 to further strengthen consumers in India. Buying through the Internet is now included.
- Settlement of disputes with the help of a neutral intermediary outside the Consumer Disputes Redressal Commission called a mediator, is now encouraged at all three tiers of Consumer Commissions.
- Consumer awareness spreading in India slowly.
- There is scope for consumers to realize their role and importance. It is often said that consumer movements can be effective only with the consumers’ active involvement. It requires a voluntary effort and struggle involving the participation of one and all.
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NCERT Solutions Class 10 Economics Chapter 5 Consumer Rights
Finally, we come to the section dealing with NCERT Solutions Class 10 Economics Chapter 5 Consumer Rights. Use these answers to ace your CBSE 10th board exam.
Ques 1. Why are rules and regulations required in the marketplace? Illustrate with a few examples.
Answer: Rules and regulations are required and important in the marketplace for the protection of the consumer. Buyers can be easily misled by the seller, and in case of any complaint against the shopkeeper, the blame is mostly put on the buyer. The sellers tend to hold no responsibility for the goods once sold. Hence, in order to protect consumers from such incidents, rules and regulations are required in the marketplace. For example, if a person buys a product and checks the expiry date after paying for the product, the shopkeeper should restore the expired product. If no rules were maintained, then the shopkeeper might refuse to compensate for the product.
Ques 2. What factors gave birth to the consumer movement in India? Trace its evolution.
Answer: The consumer movement arose out of the dissatisfaction of the consumers. The factors that gave birth to the consumer movement in India are as follows:
- There was no legal system available to consumers to protect them from exploitation in the marketplace.
- It started because of the necessity of protecting and promoting the interests of consumers against unethical and unfair trade practices.
- Rampant food shortages.
- Black marketing.
- Adulteration of food as well as of edible oil.
Till the mid-1970s, consumer organisations were busy writing articles and holding exhibitions to arouse consciousness among consumers. There has been an upsurge in the number of consumer groups since the 1980s. There are about 700 consumer organisations in India currently, working in the field of consumer protection. Increased awareness among the consumers about their rights also led to a gradual transition from a predominantly sellers’ market to a buyers’ market.
These movements have also influenced the government to work for the protection of the consumer, and the Consumer Protection Act was passed in 1986 to safeguard the interests of the consumers.
Ques 3. Explain the need for consumer consciousness by giving two examples.
Answer: The consumer should be conscious while trading or buying anything in the market to avoid being exploited in the marketplace and charged wrongly for the goods.
For example, a person should always check the expiry and manufacturing date of the product before buying it and must complain to the shopkeeper in the consumer forum if any expired product is found in the shop.
Another example that proves consumer consciousness is that consumers should always ask for a computerised bill for the goods they buy. This is because if a consumer has been provided with the wrong product, the consumer forum demands a bill that acts as proof that the products given by the shopkeeper are wrong.
4. Mention a few factors which cause the exploitation of consumers.
Answer: A few factors that cause the exploitation of consumers are mentioned below:
- The most important factor is the lack of awareness. People do not ask for proper bills while buying products, which ultimately results in the exploitation of the consumer if the product bought is defective.
- There is no proper monitoring of rules and regulations.
- Consumer ignores small losses and does not complain about them, which makes the seller more ignorant.
- Lack of consumer consciousness. A consumer must always check the MRP, expiry date and manufacturing date and then buy a product.
Ques 5. What is the rationale behind the enactment of the Consumer Protection Act 1986?
Answer: The rationale behind the enactment of the Consumer Protection Act 1986 was to set up a department solely responsible for handling the complaints that were raised by the consumer and a separate department for the Central and state governments. Its main aim was to address the problems of consumers who reach the consumer courts for exploitation in the marketplace.
Ques 6. Describe some of your duties as consumers if you visit a shopping complex in your locality.
Answer: Some of our duties as consumers are given below:
- Always ask for a proper bill.
- Check the MRP and do not pay more than the market price.
- Check for the expiry date and the date of manufacturing before buying any goods from the market.
- If you see any rule or regulation under the marketplace laws that is being exploited, immediately report the consumer courts.
- Do not leave a small amount of disparity unattended. This may make the shopkeeper liable to continue the disparity for the other consumers as well.
Ques 7. Suppose you buy a bottle of honey and a biscuit packet. Which logo or mark you will have to look for and why?
Answer: If we buy a bottle of honey or a packet of biscuits, we would look for the Agmark and the ISI mark before buying them. It is because these symbols specify that the products have been made by government-authorised companies.
Ques 8. What legal measures were taken by the government to empower consumers in India?
Answer: The legal measures that were taken by the government to empower consumers are as mentioned below.
- The Consumer Protection Act (COPRA) was passed by the Government for the security of consumers and in order to prevent them from being exploited at the market level.
- A consumer court was set up for people where cases against any disparity with the consumer were raised.
- The Right to Information Act was passed in the year 2005 so that the people of the country could be made aware of the functioning of the Government.
9. Mention some of the rights of consumers and write a few sentences on each.
Answer: A few rights of the consumers include:
- Right to Choose – Any consumer who receives a service in whatever capacity, regardless of gender, age, and nature of service, has the right to choose whether to continue receiving the service. No customer can be denied the right to choose what they want to buy.
- Right to Information – The RTI Act was passed in 2005 to make every citizen of the country aware of the functioning of the Government.
- Right to Represent – This act gives the right of the consumer to present before the consumer court and put forth their case of disparity in the form of law.
- Right to Seek Redressal – Consumers have the right to seek redressal against any unfair trade practices and exploitation. If any damage is done to a consumer, they have the right to get compensation depending on the degree of damage.
Ques 10. By what means can the consumers express their solidarity?
Answer: Consumers can express their solidarity by organising in small groups that can fight against exploitative trade policies. Such groups get financial aid from the government to fight the case against the shopkeeper.
Ques 11. Critically examine the progress of the consumer movement in India.
Answer: The consumer movement in India has progressed rapidly over the past few years. The consumer rights that have been passed by the Government of the country have managed the people to become more aware and fight for their rights in the consumer courts. The Consumer Protection Act (COPRA) passed by the government made it easier for people to complain about any wrong practice performed by the shopkeeper or seller of the product. The public has become more aware, and proper actions are taken against any ill practice in the marketplace.
12. Match the following.
| (i) Availing details of ingredients of a product | (a) Right to safety |
| (ii) Agmark | (b) Dealing with consumer cases |
| (iii) Accident due to faulty engine in a scooter | (c) Certification of edible oil and cereals |
| (iv) District Consumer Court | (d) Agency that develops standards for goods and services |
| (v) Consumers International | (e) Right to information |
| (vi) Bureau of Indian Standards | (f) Global-level institution of consumer welfare organisations |
Answer:
| (i) Availing details of ingredients of a product | (e) Right to information |
| (ii) Agmark | (c) Certification of edible oil and cereals |
| (iii) Accident due to faulty engine in a scooter | (a) Right to safety |
| (iv) District Consumer Court | (b) Dealing with consumer cases |
| (v) Consumers International | (f) Global-level institution of consumer welfare organisations |
| (vi) Bureau of Indian Standards | (d) The agency that develops standards for goods and services |
13. Say True or False.
(i) COPRA applies only to goods.
Answer: False
(ii) India is one of the many countries in the world which has exclusive courts for consumer redressal.
Answer: True
(iii) When a consumer feels that he has been exploited, he must file a case in the District Consumer Court.
Answer: True
(iv) It is worthwhile to move to consumer courts only if the damages incurred are of high value.
Answer: True
(v) Hallmark is the certification maintained for the standardisation of jewellery.
Answer: True
(vi) The consumer redressal process is very simple and quick.
Answer: False
(vii) A consumer has the right to get compensation depending on the degree of the damage.
Answer: True
FAQs
Ans: Any individual who purchases any service or any goods for his/her personal use and not for reselling is known as a consumer.
Ans: According to the right to safety, while using many goods and services, we as consumers, have the right to be protected against the marketing of goods and delivery of services that are hazardous to life and property.
The producers need to strictly follow the required safety rules and regulations.
A public or government action is also important to assure quality maintenance.
Ans: The full form of COPRA is the Consumer Protection Act.
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