Government is committed to safeguard the interests of consumers, for which, several revolutionary measures have been initiated.This was stated by Minister for Food, Civil Supplies and Consumer Affairs (FCS&CA) and Tribal Affairs, Chowdhary Zulfkar Ali today while chairing a review meeting on working of Consumer Affair Department.During the meeting, threadbare discussion was held on apt implementation of Essential Commodities Act and Consumer Protection Act to provide yardsticks for better protection of the interests of consumers.The Minister assessed the progress made in last three years in different sectors and asked the concerned officers to submit comprehensive report of past achievements and future course of action.Ch Zulfkar directed to constitute Price Monitoring Unit at district level to be equipped with facilities such as toll free number, computers, and internet facility to register the complaints of consumers and expedite the process of redressing their problems.The Minister, while calling for further strengthening of the Consumer Forums in the state, said that government is committed to secure the rights of the consumer besides providing them with a strong, accessible grievances redressal mechanism. The Minister emphasized upon the need for checking adulteration of various items like milk, drugs, petrol etc.He also reviewed the functioning of District Consumer Forums and sought detailed report on consumer grievances redressal mechanism along with services provided to consumers by both government and the private hospitals.
The meeting was informed about various activities of enforcement wing and Legal Metrological Department along with measures taken to control over charging of products, short weightment, adulteration and various consumer concerns related to essential commodities like LPG, petrol, drugs, fertilizers including selling of books and uniforms.Ch Zulfkar exhorted upon the officers to ensure that the traders are charging a reasonable price for their product while maintaining the quality. The meeting also decided to hold consumer affairs awareness programmes in every district to spread awareness among the people about their rights, role of different government departments related to consumer affairs and laws to protect their interests. The Minister called for launching an extensive media campaign to create awareness on different issues concerning consumer rights and applicable laws.The meeting was attended by Commissioner Secretary FCS&CA, Mehraj-ud-Din Khan, Director FCS&CA, Kashmir, Nisar Ahmad Wani, Director FCS&CA, Jammu, Ch Rashid Azam Inqalabi, Controller LMD, R K Katoch, Joint Controller LMD Jammu V S Sambyal, Joint Controller LMD Kashmir, Amar Singh besides other senior functionaries of the department.