Lok Sabha Question No. 3184 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2026-03-11
Subject: Consumer Protection and Expeditious Grievance Redressal through Digital Justice
Ministry: CONSUMER AFFAIRS, FOOD AND PUBLIC DISTRIBUTION
Asked by: Shri Ganesh Singh

## Government of India

## Ministry of Consumer Affairs, Food and Public Distribution Department of Consumer Affairs

## LOK SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO.3184

TO BE ANSWERED ON 11.03.2026

## CONSUMER PROTECTION AND EXPEDITIOUS GRIEVANCE REDRESSAL THROUGH DIGITAL JUSTICE

3184.  SHRI GANESH SINGH:

## Will the Minister of CONSUMER AFFAIRS, FOOD AND PUBLIC DISTRIBUTION be pleased to state:

- (a) whether  digital  reforms  such  as  e-Daakhil,  e-Jagriti,  video  conferencing,  and  the  AI-enabled National Consumer Helpline (NCH) have led to measurable improvements in case disposal and if so, the extent of reduction in pending cases;
- (b) whether it  is  a  fact  that  in  2025,  more  than  1.4  lakh  cases  were  disposed  of,  over  90,000  virtual hearings were conducted and refunds amounting to 42.6 crore were facilitated;
- (c) if so, whether the Government is preparing a roadmap to further strengthen these digital systems up to the district and block levels;
- (d) if  so,  whether  the  Government  proposes  to  further  expand  collaboration  with  Central  Consumer Protection Authority (CCPA), Bureau of India Study (BIS), Legal Metrology and private/academic institutions to effectively regulate misleading advertisements, dark patterns and unfair trade practices in digital markets; and
- (e) if so, the details thereof?

## ANSWER

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

(a) to (c) : The  e-Daakhil  portal,  launched  in  2020,  facilitated  online  filing,  fee  payment  and  case monitoring. Further, to modernize the existing applications with the latest technologies, the Department has launched  'e-Jagriti'  portal  on  1st  January,  2025,  which  aims  to  enhance  consumer  grievance  redressal through  a  micro-service  architecture,  Artificial  Intelligence  /  Machine  Learning  integration  and  modern features  like  faceless  onboarding  and  role-based  dashboards.  It  unifies  existing  applications  (OCMS,  eDaakhil,  NCDRC CMS, CONFONET) into a single, scalable platform, allowing users to file complaints seamlessly  from  anywhere  with  multilingual  support.  The  portal  is  designed  to  provide  a  convenient, transparent and efficient means for consumers to seek redressal by enabling online complaint filing, digital submission of documents, online payment of fees and also supports virtual courtrooms, enabling the hearing of cases remotely and ensuring faster disposal while reducing dependency on physical infrastructure. These features  address  bottlenecks  like  geographical  barriers,  scheduling  conflicts  and  manual  interventions. Further, VC equipment for conducting hearing through video conferencing mode has already been installed and made functional at 10 benches of the National Consumer Disputes Redressal Commission (NCDRC) and 35 benches of State Consumer Disputes Redressal Commissions (SCDRCs).

e-Jagriti  has  reduced  reliance  on  physical  proceedings  and  has  accelerated  justice  delivery.  The National  Consumer  Disputes  Redressal  Commission  (NCDRC)  and  State  Commissions  in  Chandigarh, Chhattisgarh, Himachal Pradesh, Karnataka, Madhya Pradesh, Meghalaya, Nagaland, Puducherry, Punjab, Rajasthan,  Tamil  Nadu,  and  Uttarakhand  achieved  disposal  rates  above  100% after  July,  2025.  In  2025, 1,62,474 cases were filed and 1,50,197 disposed of, that outperformed the disposal rate of the year 2024. Also, 679 Non-Resident Indians (NRIs) registered their complaints using e-Jagriti portal from abroad till 28 th  February, 2026.

The  National  Consumer  Helpline  (NCH)  administered  by  the  Department  of  Consumer  Affairs  has emerged as a single point of access to consumers across the country for their grievance redressal at a prelitigation stage. Consumers can register their grievances from all over the country in 17 languages including Hindi, English, Kashmiri, Punjabi, Nepali, Gujarati, Marathi, Kannada, Telugu, Tamil, Malayalam, Maithili, Santhali, Bengali, Odia, Assamese and 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  channels-  WhatsApp  (8800001915),  SMS  (8800001915),  email  (nch-ca@gov.in), the NCH app, the web portal (consumerhelpline.gov.in) and the Umang app, as per their convenience. 1,398 companies,  who  have  voluntarily  partnered  with  NCH  as  part  of  the  'Convergence'  programme  directly respond to these grievances according to their redressal process and revert by providing a feedback to the complainant on the portal.

The technological transformation of the NCH has significantly boosted its call-handling capacity. The number  of  calls  received  by  NCH  has  grown  from  62,172  calls  in  December  2019  to  3,59,336  calls  in December 2025.  This  growth  reflects  the  rising  confidence  of  consumers  in  the  helpline.  Similarly,  the average number of complaints registered per month has surged from 37,062 in 2017 to 1,47,635 in 2025. Additionally,  grievance  registration  via  WhatsApp  has  gained  momentum,  with  the  percentage  of complaints filed through the platform increasing from 12% in December 2023 to 21% in December 2025 demonstrating a growing preference for digital communication channels.

In  a  significant  move  to  further  enhance  grievance  redressal,  NCH  has  introduced  AI-based  Speech Recognition,  a  Translation  System,  and  an  AI  enabled  Chatbot  as  part  of  the  NCH  2.0  initiative.  These technological  advancements  aim  to  make  the  grievance  filing  process  more  seamless,  efficient,  and inclusive.  The  AI-powered  Speech  Recognition  and  Translation  System  enables  consumers  to  file complaints through voice input, reducing manual intervention. The AI enabled Chatbot provides real-time assistance,  streamlining  complaint-handling  processes,  and  improving  the  overall  user  experience.  These upgrades  ensure  that  consumers  from  diverse  linguistic  backgrounds  have  equal  access  to  the  grievance redressal system.

The  National  Consumer  Helpline  (NCH)  has  successfully  facilitated  refund  of  ₹52  crore  to consumers between 25th April 2025 and 31st January 2026. This significant redressal was achieved across 31 sectors, effectively addressing 79,521 consumer grievances related to refund claims.

(d) & (e) : To safeguard consumers from unfair trade practices in e-commerce, the Department of Consumer Affairs has also notified the Consumer Protection (E-commerce) Rules, 2020 under the provisions of the Consumer Protection Act, 2019. These rules, inter-alia, outline the responsibilities of e-commerce entities and  specify  the  liabilities  of  marketplace  and  inventory  e-commerce  entities,  including  provisions  for consumer grievance redressal.

Central  Consumer Protection Authority, in exercise of the powers conferred  by Section 18  of the Consumer Protection Act, 2019, issued 'Guidelines for Prevention and Regulation of Dark Patterns, 2023' on 30th November, 2023, listing 13 specified dark patterns identified in e-Commerce sector. These include false urgency, Basket Sneaking, Confirm shaming, forced action, Subscription trap, Interface Interference, Bait and switch, Drip Pricing, Disguised Advertisements, Nagging, Trick Wording, Saas Billing and Rogue Malwares.

A Joint Working Group, comprising  representatives from Ministries, National Law Universities and Voluntary Consumer Organizations, has been constituted vide Office Memorandum dated 5th June,2025 for identifying the dark patterns and stakeholders to work together in creating a transparent, ethical and usercentric online environment .

An 'Advisory in terms of Consumer Protection Act, 2019 on Self-Audit by E-Commerce Platforms for  detecting  the  Dark  Patterns  on  their  platforms  to  create  a  fair,  ethical  and  consumer  centric  digital ecosystem' was issued by Central Consumer Protection Authority on 5th June, 2025.

29 leading e-commerce platforms have voluntarily submitted their self-declaration letters confirming compliance with the Guidelines for Prevention and Regulation of Dark Patterns, 2023.

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