NEW DELHI: Consumer affairs department on Friday directed companies in automobile, consumer durables, mobile and electronics, and farming equipment to join govt’s “Right to Repair” initiative. It also instructed water purifiers companies to share the life of candles and other consumables based on geographical areas and water alkalinity so that consumers know their status rather than completely relying on the company representatives for replacing them.
The department has launched the Right to Repair Portal India that provides consumers to avail repair associated information for their products and reduce e-waste.
At a meeting with industry players, consumer affairs secretary Rohit Kumar Singh directed companies to get onboard the platform. “During the meeting it was highlighted that a product that cannot be repaired or falls under planned obsolescence i.e. designed to have an artificially limited life, not only becomes e-waste but also forces the consumers to buy new products for want of any repair to reuse it. Hence, the idea is to ensure that when a consumer buys a product, she/ he has full ownership of the product and in case of repair, the consumers are not deceived in absence of relevant information,” the department said.
Officials said on the basis of grievances registered at National Consumer Helpline, govt observed that repairs are getting severely restricted because not only are there considerable delay in repairs but at times these are priced exorbitantly high and the consumer who has once bought the product is hardly given any choice.
“Prominent company of water purifiers wherein large number of complaints were witnessed and were directed to furnish the average life span of their candles and other consumables based on specific geographies and water alkalinity. In the interest of consumers it was emphasised that in sectors wherein availability of spare parts, genuine reparability, exaggerated conditions of warranty is not addressed clearly, it also affects the consumers right to be informed,” the department said.
Mar 08,2024
Source: TOI