Lok Sabha Question No. 247 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2024-07-24
Subject: National Consumer Helpline
Ministry: CONSUMER AFFAIRS, FOOD AND PUBLIC DISTRIBUTION
Asked by: Shri Shrirang Appa Chandu Barne, Shri Arvind Ganpat Sawant

## Ministry of Consumer Affairs, Food and Public Distribution

## Government of India Department of Consumer Affairs

## LOK SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 247 TO BE ANSWERED ON 24.07. 2024

## NATIONAL CONSUMER HELPLINE

## 247. SHRI SHRIRANG APPA CHANDU BARNE: SHRI ARVIND GANPAT SAWANT:

## Will  the  Minister  of CONSUMER AFFAIRS, FOOD AND PUBLIC DISTRIBUTION miHkksDrk ekeys] [kk| vkSj lkoZtfud forj.k ea=h be pleased to state

- (a) whether the National Consumer helpline monthly gets more than 1.25 lakh complaints;
- (b) if so, the facts in this regard and the details of the fields from which these are related to;
- (c) whether there is a need to upgrade and strengthen the consumer helpline setup and empanel people with knowledge of law or technology to help resolve the matters;
- (d) if so, the response of the Government in this regard; and
- (e) the extent to which the Mediation Act, 2023 is helpful to fasten the process?

## ANSWER

## miHkksDrk ekeys] [kk| vkSj lkoZtfud forj.k jkT; ea=h (श्री बी.एल. वर्मा )

## THE MINISTER OF STATE CONSUMER AFFAIRS, FOOD AND PUBLIC DISTRIBUTION (SHRI B.L. VERMA)

(a) to (e) : The Department of Consumer Affairs  has revamped, the National Consumer Helpline (NCH) which has emerged as a single point of access to consumers across the country for grievance redressal at pre-litigation  stage.  It  is  available  to  all  consumers  of  the  country  wherein  consumers  can  register  their grievances  from  all  over  the  country  in  17  languages  (i.e.  Hindi,  English,  Kashmiri,  Punjabi,  Nepali, Gujarati,  Marathi,  Kannada,  Telugu,  Tamil,  Malayalam, Maithali, Santhali,  Bengali,  Odia,  Assamese, Manipuri)  through  a  toll-free  number  1915.  These  grievances  can  be  registered  on  Integrated  Grievance Redressal Mechanism (INGRAM), an omni- channel IT enabled central portal, through various channelsWhats App, SMS, mail, NCH app, web portal, Umang app as per their convenience.

Transformative changes and technological upgradation of the NCH has led to increase in the call handling capacity of National Consumer Helpline. Number of calls received at NCH has increased during the last few years.  These initiatives taken by the Department have also encouraged consumers to register their grievances on the NCH manifested with an increase in the number of grievances registered at NCH.

Average number of complaints registered during a month with the National Consumer Helpline is as per the table below:

| Financial Year              | Average number of dockets registered on monthly basis   |
|-----------------------------|---------------------------------------------------------|
| Apr'24 ~ June'24 (2024~ 25) | 1,07,966                                                |
| 2023 ~ 2024                 | 1,02,976                                                |
| 2022 ~ 2023                 | 83,832                                                  |

The  National  Consumer  Helpline  receives  complaints  related  to  a  broad  spectrum  of  consumer related  issues  like  E-Commerce,  Banking,  Electronic  Products,  Consumer  Durables,  Digital  Payment, Telecom, Legal, Retail Outlets, Broadband & Internet and Agency Services.

The National Consumer Helpline regularly trains their staff, equipping them with the knowledge and skills needed in the legal and technology field to handle complex cases effectively by conducting training workshops from time to  time.    This  ensures  that  helpline  counsellors  not  only  offer  comprehensive  and accurate information to the consumers about existing regulatory frameworks and consumer rights related issues but also ensure efficient case management, data security and confidentiality.

The  Mediation  Act,  2023  provides  for  a  voluntary  option  to  parties  to  mediate  any  civil  and commercial  disputes  before  instituting  any  legal  proceedings  in  court  thus  leading  to  out  of  court  and amicable settlement of disputes.

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