In today’s times, it is not easy to sell things to the customers and with some flaws, the product stands no chance at all. It has been observed that where literacy rate is high and social awareness is better, the consumer cannot be easily exploited. The Department of Consumer Affairs has taken several steps to strengthen consumer movement in the country and protect consumer interest by involving State Governments, Voluntary Consumer Organizations, and Consumer Activists etc.

Consumer Protection in India received a shot in the arm in recent times with the Department of Consumer Affairs, introducing new schemes like setting up of Consumer Clubs in schools and the launching of Jagriti Shivir Yojana for spreading consumer awareness. Children are the backbone of any society. Children in India form a huge target market available to advertisers and they are already focusing on the kid channels. Children also view a lot of the advertisements, in India the advertising expenditure per year on products meant for children but purchased by parents like health drinks, is also quite a lot.

Many schemes have been started by the Government to empower the Indian Consumer like Consumer Courts. Each state has a Consumer Disputes Redressal Commission known as the State Commission. Similarly, every district in the country has a Consumer Dispute Redressal Forum known as the District Forum.

Another intervention is the ‘Consumer Online Resource and Empowerment Centre (CORE Centre)’ for providing consumer related information, guidance and an online consumer complaint redressal mechanism. It is being run by the Consumer Coordination Council   (CCC), which is a coalition of 51 consumer organizations of this country.

The country now has exclusive special law to protect the interest of the consumer with a foolproof redressal mechanism in case of defective goods and unsatisfactory services. If the consumers are responsible, vigilant and are able to assert their rights and responsibilities, resist/reject substandard goods/services wherever required and do not hesitate to seek justice through consumer courts if needed, the manufacturers, traders and service providers cannot afford to take them for granted while selling a product or rendering service on payment or to adopt any unfair trade practice. An alert consumer aware of his rights and responsibilities not only can protect himself but can also make consumer sovereignty a reality.

The consumer movement started in 1962 when the Bill for Consumer Rights was moved in the US Congress. John F. Kennedy had equated the rights of the ordinary American consumer with national interest. He gave the American consumer four basic rights such as, right to safely, right to choose, right to information, right to be heard. As consumers laced exploitation by business, Kennedy the politician used consumer rights as a political opportunity during his election campaign. He received support from the American public. When he was elected as US President he took a series of steps to ensure the implementation of consumer rights. Thirteen years later President Gerald Ford fell that the four rights constituted in Kennedy’s Bill of Rights were inadequate for a situation where most consumers are not educated enough to make the right choices. So he added the Right to Consumer Education to these rights. An informed consumer cannot be exploited easily.