Consumer Protection Act, 2019

CIPE
Consumer Protection Act, 2019

Brief History of Consumer Protection Act in India
Key features of the Consumer Protection Act, 2019
Deficiency of Service
Indian Judiciary on “Deficiency of Services” under Consumer Protection Laws
Indian Medical Association v. V.P. Shanth
Gurshinder Singh vs. Shriram General Insurance Co. Ltd and Ors. 2020-
Unfair Trade Practices
Product Liability
Privity of contract and product liability
Types of product liability
Remedies available to consumers under the Consumer Protection Act, 2019
Defences against product liability claims
Indian laws and regulations on misleading advertisements
The Key Obligations Applying To Ecommerce Entities And Sellers Ecommerce
Entity
Consumer Complaint Redressal Mechanism
Central Consumer Protection Authorities
Advertisement to Misleading Advertisement | Horlicks Ltd. v. Zydus Wellness
Products
NCDRC
continuation
Forms of Ragging
Punishment for Participation in/or Abetment of Ragging :
SELF DECLARATION BY PARENTS/GUARDIANS
SELF DECLARATION BY THE STUDENT
Clause -3 What constitutes Ragging :
Clause -7 Action to be taken by the Head of the institution
Clause -9 Administrative action in the event of ragging:
NSPE Code of ethics
Ethics in Engineering
Steps to Deal with Issues
Important Skills for Ethical Reasoning
Types of Moral Issues
Types of Inquiries
Types of Complexities
Steps in Facing Moral Dilemmas
Moral Autonomy – Skills Needed
Skills for Improving Moral Autonomy
RESPONSIBILITY OF ENGINEERS
Collective Bargaining
CORPORATE SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY
18HS71 - Constitution of India and Professional Ethics

RV College of Engineering , Bengaluru – 59
(Autonomous Institution affiliated to VTU, Belagavi)
Department of Industrial Engineering and Management

Unit – III
Consumer Protection Law - Definition and Need of Consumer Protection; Consumer Rights
under the Consumer Protection Act, 2019; Unfair Trade Practice, Defect in goods, Deficiency
in services; Product liability and Penal Consequences, False and Misleading Advertisement, E-
Commerce, Alternate dispute Redress mechanism; Redresses Mechanisms under the
Consumer Protection Act, 2019. An overview of Indian Penal Code 1860 (Law Of Crimes).
05 Hrs
Consumer Protection Act, 2019

Introduction
In today‟s world of heavy advertising and trade malpractices, consumers are pushed to a risky
situation. The slogan line of „Jago Grahak Jago‟ is applicable today. What is advertised is
not what is given, consumers are given expired products, consumers are not made aware of
the dangers that he/she can be exposed to. This affects trade and the economy as demand for
such products falls and the sale gets hampered. One consumer after using a defective product
goes on to complain to all his relatives who then try to stay away from the product and the
shop. Most of the time due to the fault of the manufacturer, the shopkeeper has a downfall.
The Consumer Protection Act, 2019 replaced the old Consumer Protection Act, 1986. The
new bill was passed by the president on Aug 06, 2019. Here we are explaining the key
features of this Consumer Protection Act, 2019.The Consumer Protection Bill, 2019 has been
passed by the Lok Sabha on Jul 30, 2019, and Rajya Sabha passed on Aug 06, 2019. This bill
was introduced in the parliament by the Minister of Consumer Affairs, Food and Public
Distribution, Mr. Ram Vilas Paswan.
Brief History of Consumer Protection Act in India

Consumer Protection has always been a matter of great concern. In ancient India, effective
measures were initiated to protect consumers from crimes in the market place. Ancient law-
givers ably described various kinds of unfair trade practices and also prescribed severe
punishments for wrongdoers. Mainly, acts of adulteration and false weights and measures
were seriously dealt with.
In the medieval period, some Muslim rulers developed well-organized market mechanisms to
monitor prices and the supply of goods to the markets. During the British period, the modern
legal system was introduced in India and many laws were enacted to protect the interests of
consumers generally.
Some of the laws which were passed during the British regime concerning consumer interests
were: the Contract Act of 1872, the Sale of Goods Act of 1930, the Penal Code of 1860, the
Drugs and Cosmetics Act of 1940, the Usurious Loans Act of 1918, and the Agriculture
Dept. of Industrial Engineering and Management

Procedure (Grading and Marketing Act) of 1937. These laws provided specific legal
protection for consumers.
Today, the civil justice system is tainted with deficiencies that discourage the consumer from
seeking legal recourse. However, the Consumer Protection Act of 1986, which provided easy
access to justice, had brought a legal revolution in India as a result of its cost-effective
mechanisms and popular support. However, with the gradual advancements in technology,
the age-old 1986 Act was unable to keep up with the grievances of the modern consumer.
Thus, a need was felt to substitute the old Act which resulted in the enactment of the
Consumer Protection Act, 2019.
Meaning of Consumer Protection Act, 2019

Consumer Protection Act, 2019 is a law to protect the interests of the consumers. This act
was inevitable to resolve a large number of pending consumer complaints in consumer courts
across the country. It has ways and means to solve the consumer grievances speedily.
Aim of the Consumer Protection Act

The basic aim of the Consumer Protection Act, 2019 to save the rights of the consumers by
establishing authorities for timely and effective administration and settlement of consumers‟
disputes.
Definition of the consumer

As per the act; a person is called a consumer who avails the services and buys any good for
self-use. Worth to mention that if a person buys any good and avail any service for resale or
commercial purpose, is not considered a consumer. This definition covers all types of
transactions i.e. online and offline.
Key features of the Consumer Protection Act, 2019
1. Establishment of the Central Consumer Protection Authority (CCPA):

The act has the provision of the Establishment of the CCPA which will protect, promote and
enforce the rights of consumers. The CCPA will regulate cases related to unfair trade
practices, misleading advertisements, and violation of consumer rights.
The CCPA will have the right to impose a penalty on the violators and passing orders to
recall goods or withdraw services, discontinuation of the unfair trade practices and
reimbursement of the price paid by the consumers.
The Central Consumer Protection Authority will have an investigation wing to enquire and
investigate such violations. The CCPA will be headed by the Director-General.
2. Rights of consumers:
The act provides 6 rights to the consumers;
i. To have information about the quantity, quality, purity, potency, price, and standard
of goods or services.
ii. To be protected from hazardous goods and services.
iii. To be protected from unfair or restrictive trade practices.
iv. To have a variety of goods or services at competitive prices

Deficiency of Service
When a service is found deficient by a consumer, they can lodge a complaint under the
Consumer Protection Act, 2019. Thus, the prime requirement is that the matter must fall
within the “definition of service”, and it must entail a deficiency as per the requirements
provided under the Consumer Protection Act, 2019.
What is "Deficiency of Service"?

 According to the definition under Section. 2(11) of Consumer Protection Act 2019 ("the
Act"), any sort of imperfection, or defect in the feature, quality, amount, worth,
authenticity, its capacity or potential, and standard which is obligatory to be maintained
and regulated as per the laws and statutes in function or any agreement/contract claimed
by the seller, with respect to the products and goods, is known as deficiency.
 Willful and deliberate concealment of important information, omission or negligence of
acts by seller which may lead to injury or loss to the consumer(s), also comes under the
ambit of deficiency of service.
 Any act(s), which a prudent seller is supposed to do or is supposed to omit, but
deliberately does the contrast, such actions amount to 'deficiency of service'.
Deficiency of service can be witnessed in any service sector where there is buyer-seller
relationship, such as, railways, banks, legal aid, electricity, construction, education,
transportation, aviation, hospitality, restaurants, entertainment etc. Deficiency of service can
have minor to grave consequences, ranging from inconvenience or harassment to mental or
physical injury to death, thereby leading to legal consequences.
The Consumer Protection Act (both old and new) is a legislation enacted in India with the
sole purpose of protecting and safeguarding the interests of consumers. The Consumer
Protection Act, 2019, which came into effect on July, 20 2020, not only covers within its
ambit physical platforms for buyer-seller relationship but also recognizes services provided
by E-commerce platforms.
Indian Judiciary on “Deficiency of Services” under Consumer Protection Laws

Indian Medical Association v. V.P. Shanth- In this case, the Hon'ble Supreme Court through
this case included medical profession and medical negligence, within the scope of the
Consumer Protection Act. Consequently, empowering the aggrieved (due to medical
negligence) to sue for damages for deficiency in services by a medical professional or
medical institution, in a Civil Court.
Gurshinder Singh vs. Shriram General Insurance Co. Ltd and Ors. 2020- In this case, the
Hon'ble Supreme Court while reiterating the verdict passed in the case of Om Prakash v.
Reliance General Insurance and Anr. Civil Appeal No. 15611/2017 held that insurance
claims should not be declined on technical grounds, if the reason behind it is satisfactorily
explained and proved. It was further opined by the Court that if the insurance claim is
declined by the Insurer because of untimely intimation of occurrence of theft/robbery, it
would be considered as a technical ground of rejection and the same would be unjust and not
fair, if the respective claim in question has already been verified. Hence, it was held by the
Court that, mere delay in intimating the insurance company about the theft must not act as a
valid ground to decline or repudiate the insurance claim, which has already been proved to be
genuine.

Unfair Trade Practices

A trade practice is touted as unfair when in order to promote its services or sale of its goods,
supply and distribution of its products, an entity uses illicit and illegal means to mislead the
general public into opting for in-genuine and deceptive goods and services. Some examples
are: portraying the goods to be of good quality when they are actually of inferior/poor quality,
misleading public with fake components and ingredients, misrepresentation of services,
claiming used goods and products to be brand new, fake advertising, selling goods not
complying with safety and other industry standards while claiming otherwise etc.
According to the newly enacted Consumer Protection Act 2019, E-commerce Rules on unfair
trade practices have been laid down under the Consumer Protection (E-commerce) Rules,
2020.
 These rules are applicable to all e-commerce portals, inventories, marketplaces and
other entities (including foreign entities, which are situated outside India but supply
goods and services to India as well) involved in providing services to customers.
Activities which take place on personal level and non- professionally, are exempted
from the applicability of these Rules.
 As per the rules, E-commerce entities are mandatorily required to dispense
information such as refund policy, warranty, exchange rules, payment options,
tracking information, shipment details etc. If the goods or products sold are not up to
the mark/quality as portrayed, then sellers are liable to take them back or exchange
them accordingly.
 Such platforms are mandated to answer any query or complaint filed by a consumer
within 48 hours and shall provide proper redressal to such consumer complaint within
the period of 1 months, from the date of receipt of Moreover, appointment of
grievance officer is compulsory.
Product Liability
Product liability under CPA 2019 is defined as the responsibility of either the product seller
or the product manufacturer to compensate the consumer for any harm caused because of the
defective or deficient product. A product should meet the reasonable expectations that a
consumer has regarding the quality and safety of the product.
The product should be both merchantable and marketable. Any defect in this part would
bring liability on the one who sold the product or the one who manufactured it. The consumer
cannot be expected by the seller or the manufacturer to specifically examine every aspect of
the product. It is well understood that if the price liability would fall on the consumer, the
product liability should fall on the seller or manufacturer.
CPA 2019 is the first legislation that expressly defines and contains provisions related to
product liability. It codifies the principle of product liability concerning sale or supply of
defective products or delivery of defective services to consumers against the product
manufacturer, product service provider, product sellers, exceptions to product liability action.
Nature of product liability law

Product liability claims before CPA 2019 were lodged under the Sale of Goods Act, 1930 ;
the Consumer Protection Act, 1986; and the Indian Contract Act, 1872 .The principle of
negligence and strict liability work in Torts and the principle of warranty is applied under the
law of contracts to claim damages for product liabilities. There is a statutory liability on

product manufacturers and product sellers under CPA 2019 for any defective product.
Moreover, such liability is strict in nature as it can hold them liable just based on the
defective product without the consumer having to prove actual negligence.
It derives its base from the concept of „caveat venditor‟ which means that the seller must
beware thereby making the seller liable for any harm caused by the product to the
consumer.Generally, product liability claims are brought under the legal
grounds of negligence , strict liability , or breach of warranty . Selling of the concerned
product in the market is a prerequisite condition to incur a product liability.
Privity of contract and product liability

Privity of contract means that no third party who is not a party to the contract can
sue. „Privity of contract‟ is no longer a requirement to sue for product liability– any
person whom the defendant could foresee that he would suffer from injury can sue. To
explain the nature of product liability and the concept of absence of „privity of contract‟ we
can take the case of Donoghue v. Stevenson wherein when a drink was offered to the
consumer with a decomposed snail in it that caused health injury to the consumer, the
consumer could hold the manufacturer of the product liable even though the contract existed
between the consumer and the seller.
Again, in Henningson v. Bloomfield Motors Inc. , where the Plaintiff bought a car from a
dealer and the car started to malfunction within 10 days of delivery which resulted in the
Plaintiff‟s wife suffering injuries, it was held that the Plaintiff had to get remedy because it
was a breach of the implied warranty of safety. The fact that it was the plaintiff‟s wife and
not the plaintiff who got hurt is no excuse as the product liability extended to every
foreseeable user.
Types of product liability

Here, we would deal with the various types of product liability claims that a consumer can
bring against the seller or manufacturer. They can be of 4 types:
 Manufacturing defects are caused when certain products get manufactured differently or
miss any part because of defects or negligence during the manufacturing process. Here
only a few products and not all suffer from the defect.
 In case of a design defect, the design of the product itself is wrong thus resulting in an
entire set of products that are incapable of performing their required functions. This is a
mistake caused not during the manufacturing stage but while creating the blueprint of the
product.
 In case of marketing defects, the design and manufacture of the product are perfect but
the seller while selling the product in the market does not give proper instructions to the
consumer on how to exactly use the product that results in the damage.
 When a claim is brought based on a breach of warranty, it is because the product has
failed to last and function properly for the stated warranty period.
Illustration
 Let us suppose that while manufacturing a set of pencils, the lead fails to be put in one of
the pencils- in that case, the consumer can file a product liability claim based on
manufacturing defects.
 Now, if a new type of car is being created to be suitable for desert sands but the tyre of
the car was designed negligently such that those tyres are sinking into sand- then a
product liability claim on design defects can be brought.

 If in another instance, the seller while selling an iron did not make the consumer aware
that a particular thing if not removed could increase its temperature uncontrollably fast, it
is a marketing defect.
 In another case, where a consumer buys a washing machine with an express warranty of
good functioning for 12 years but the machine malfunctions within 6 years, there would
be a product liability claim for breach of warranty.
Remedies available to consumers under the Consumer Protection Act, 2019

Remedies for product liability apply against the product manufacturer, product service
provider, and product seller. Any claim can be brought against them in case the consumer has
suffered any kind of harm or injury from using the defective product or product service.
Remedy against a product manufacturer

Section 84 under the Act states the conditions under which a consumer can claim remedy
against a product manufacturer. They are as follows:
1. There is a manufacturing defect.
2. There is a design defect.
3. There is non-confirmation to an express warranty. It does not matter if such a
warranty was made negligently or honestly.
4. There is a marketing defect, that is no warning of danger in the wrong usage was
given to the consumer in the product itself.
5. In the case where there were certain specifications to be followed while
manufacturing the product and they have not been complied with.
Unreasonably dangerous goods are defective because they are likely to jeopardize the safety
of a reasonable user. The danger may be due to defective design and non-meeting of
expectations of the user.
Remedy against a product service provider

Section 85 under the Act deals with the liabilities of a product service provider. A product
service provider is any person who gives services in respect of a product.
A product service provider would be liable to the consumer if-
1. The service that was given in respect of the product was not of sufficient and good
quality as was required by the law that was in force at that time or as per the
contract if any.
2. There was a conscious or negligent act or omission on part of the service provider
which resulted in harm to the consumer.
3. The service provider was required to give warnings about some danger in using
the product in a wrong way which was not given which caused the injury to the
consumer.
4. There was a breach of warranty or terms of the contract of service.
Remedy against a product seller

Lastly, the consumer also has a remedy available against any liability by the product seller.
This is provided in Section 86 of the Act. The liabilities are:
1. There was an exercise of enough control by the seller in the manufacturing,
designing, testing, and labelling of the product, and this caused harm to the
consumer.
2. While selling the product, the product seller has done certain modifications to the
manufactured product and the harm caused is a direct consequence of that.

3. There was no express warranty by the product manufacturer, but the product seller
gave an express warranty which was not met.
4. A personal obligation may come on the seller if the manufacturer cannot be
recognised or made known, that is the manufacturer is undisclosed OR it is
impossible to sue the manufacturer due to some justifiable reason OR the law in
force does not apply to him. For example, if the seller is selling a product for a
foreign manufacturer, the Indian law would not apply to him. In such a case the
Indian seller would be made liable.
5. The product seller did not take proper care of the product, inspect or maintain them
or was negligent in passing certain warnings as given by the manufacturer to the
consumer and the harm resulted from it.
It must also be noted that in the above situation, the product seller and product manufacturer
are two different persons. In all of the above-given situations, the consumer can claim
compensation for the harm.
Cases of claiming remedy

 Wherein a dealer of air conditioners wanted to avoid liability after selling a second-hand
defective air conditioner by stating that he was not its manufacturer, he was prevented
from doing so and made liable for the same.
 A television set was bought and was serviced. Just after one week, the television stopped
functioning and throughout a period, 11 repairs had to be done. This was considered as a
deficiency of service and hence the consumer could claim compensation.
 When a pressure cooker burst while using it and the buyer‟s wife, who was an engineer,
lost her right hand, compensation of 1 lakh was awarded to the consumer.
 Where for a children‟s park, certain musical fountains were asked to be installed by the
supplier and the fountains failed to work even after repairs due to inherent defective
design, the entire money was asked to be refunded.
Defences against product liability claims

It may happen that the consumer had an ill motive in bringing up the claim or simply that the
consumer was ignorant of his/her own mistake. In such cases, it would be wrong and unfair to
hold the manufacturer or the seller, or the product service provider liable and ask him to pay
compensation. Hence, whenever cases are adjudged not only is the law important but the
entire fact scenario. There are instances within the conditions given in the previous chapter
too where defence is available to the opposite party if the same can be proved. Section 87 of
the Consumer Protection Act, 2019 itself points out the cases in which the liability would be
absolved. They are the exceptions to product liability claims.
First of all, in case the consumer himself had modified the sold product at the time of
harm which caused the harm/injury then the consumer cannot bring an action against
the product seller. If the consumer gets a remedy in such a case, it would be the same as if
taking advantage of one‟s wrong.
Defences available to a product manufacturer

In case a product manufacturer has not given adequate warnings and based on that a claim is
being brought against him/her, the claim would be invalid if:
1. The employer had bought the product to be used for work and adequate warnings were
issued to the employer or the product mentioned such warnings which the employer knew
about but the employee, who brought the suit was not made aware of the same.

2. The product was a component to be used in a separate product. All warnings regarding
the component product were already given. The harm was not caused by the component
product separately but only after using it with the other product.
3. The product was to be only used under the guidance of an expert and all warnings were
given to the expert.
4. The consumer himself was not in his senses while using the product due to the intake of
some intoxicating agent or drug that was not prescribed by a medical practitioner to him.
Due to such intoxication or drug effect, harm was caused.
5. Also, if any such characteristic or danger of a product is to be known by a reasonable
consumer, the manufacturer is not compelled to give any warning of that danger. For
example, it is no fault of the manufacturer if a consumer does not know that a knife if run
on the skin can cause cuts.
If the defendant can prove any of the above, he/she would not be liable to pay compensation.
Online shopping and product liability

In modern times, most people have gone online for shopping purposes. Even the new
Consumer Protection Act, 2019 includes an online consumer. This trend has become more
prevalent during the Corona crisis. People have become lazy and want to get products and
product services sitting at home. But with the advent of online shopping consumers are
getting more defrauded. They would order some product but would get something else, or the
product would cause harm to the consumer simply because no warnings were issued when the
product was delivered or on the product body. It is true that in online shopping the liability on
the defendant increases because here the consumer had no chance of looking or examining
the product and the consumer depended upon the seller to sell a product that works properly
and that does not cause any harm to the consumer. But the problem in online shopping is that
it becomes difficult to hold the opposite party liable. In the case of online shopping, the
product deliverer is also to be considered.
Liability of a product retailer or delivery service

Sometimes the online retailers like Amazon, Flipkart, etc. take the help of the argument that
they have merely delivered the product of some seller and hence they were not liable. But in a
California Court decision, this thing was repealed and it was held that online retailers would
be liable for any third-party defects of a product that is sold on its website. (see here)
Hence, now if there is any defective product, the consumer need not find the third party but
can directly claim compensation from the product retailer.
Examples when liability can be ascertained

The product manufacturer or retailer would also be liable for any kind of false
advertisement on the website- like falsely describing a product or giving false guarantees or
conveying such representations that involve unfair trade practice or deliberately concealing
important information.
There are many problems of online shopping for which there can be a liability on the
defendants. For example:
 Receiving wrong products.
 Damages to the product while in delivery.
 Product not being delivered on time.
 Where the product has been delivered by a foreign company and it is difficult to
sue for the defective product.

Sometimes there is the delivery of gray market items which are illegally sold and which
are labelled with a non-actionable warranty. Consumers can hold the seller liable for such
fraud.
Liability related to online food products

In the case of online food products, the safety measures to be taken by the seller or
manufacturer should be increased. Food traceability in the case of online food products is
important as it provides the possibility of identifying food that has a safety-related defect.
The identification of the food with the safety-related defect may also result in the supplier
being identified which is important for the food operator to know. Whenever there is a food
web-shop, the consumer must be able to know the identity and required information about the
trader, proper information about the product. If there is any defect, there would be an
obligation to pay compensation.
False and Misleading Advertisement,

The impact of advertisements on consumer rights is unquestionable, and this reality makes it
imperative that promotions be reasonable and honest. Misdirecting and bogus notices are not
just untrustworthy, but they also contort rivalry and, of course, customer decisions. False and
misdirecting ads in truth disregard a few essential privileges of purchasers – the right to data,
the right to decide, the option to be secured against dangerous products, etc. Since
advertisements are essentially intended to advance an item or assistance, one sees some
distortion in how they praise the ideals of the product or service. In any case, when it goes
past that and purposely articulates a lie or attempts to distort realities, deceiving the customer,
then at that point, it becomes questionable. For example, when a vegetable oil advertisement
gives you the feeling that you are liberated from heart issues as you are utilising that specific
oil, then, at that point, it is misrepresenting a factor when a cell phone service provider
promises STD calls for 40 paise per minute but omits to say that this rate is applicable only
when calls are made to numbers serviced by the same provider, it constitutes
misrepresentation.
The false misrepresentation can be classified into two broad categories:

 The first category involves advertisements that hawk health cures and medications of
questionable adequacy and health gadgets of obscure qualities and aid-related false
claims, especially those focusing on children, old age, and those with certain medical
conditions, for example, diabetes.
 In the second category, other kinds of false and misleading advertisements, fraudulent and
deceptive advertisements are involved (non-health, vitamins related), violating the
consumers‟ right to information and choice and thereby causing the consumer monetary
loss and even intellectual agony.
False and misleading advertisements now have a broader basis: in the past, they were only
seen in print media, appeared together with other mainstream media (such as brochures and
fees), and are now seen on TV, affecting more people, even illiterates.
Indian laws and regulations on misleading advertisements

The Consumer Protection Act, 2019
 The Consumer Protection Act of 2019 came into effect in 2020. In a video conference, Sri
Ram Vilas Paswan, who was the former head of the Ministry of Consumer Affairs, Food
and Public Distribution, briefly introduced the 2019 Consumer Protection Act to the
media. He had stated that this new legislation will empower consumers and pass various

rules and regulations to help them protect their rights through multiple provisions, such as
consumer protection advice, consumer dispute resolution committees, mediation, product
liability, and penalties for product manufacturing or sales. It promotes, protects and
enforces consumer rights.
 The legislation provides for establishing the Central Consumer Protection Authority
(CCPA) to prevent unfair business practices in e-commerce. CCPA will have the power
to investigate consumer abuse, initiate complaints/harassment, order the recall of unsafe
products and services, prohibit unfair business practices and misleading advertising, and
sanction advertisers/sponsors/publishers. The rules to prevent unfair business practices on
e-commerce platforms will also be bound by the law.
 As per the legislation, all e-commerce companies must provide information about returns,
refunds, exchanges, warranties and guarantees, shipping and delivery, payment methods,
exclusion mechanisms, payment method security, payment refund options, etc., including
the country of origin, which is necessary for consumers to make informed buying
decisions on these platforms.
 It is also stated that e-commerce platforms must confirm the receipt of any consumer
complaints within 48 hours and resolve them within one month from the date of receipt of
the complaint under the law. Shri Ram Vilas Paswan had further stated in the video
conference that the new law introduces the concept of product liability and enables
product manufacturers, product service providers, and product sellers to make any claims
for damages.
 The legislation also optimises the process of resolving consumer disputes at the
Consumer Council, including (but not limited to) authorising state and regional
committees to review their orders and enabling consumers to file complaints
electronically and lodge a complaint with a qualified consumer council at the location
complaint. If the acceptance issue is not resolved within the specified 21 days, a
complaint can be filed in Consumer Commissions that have jurisdiction over the
residence, videoconferencing for hearing and deemed admissibility of complaints.
 The new law also provides a mechanism for resolving disputes through mediation and
simplifies the arbitration procedure. If any reservations are approved in advance and both
parties agree to it, the Consumer Council will file a complaint concerning mediation. The
mediation panel is established under the auspices of the Consumer Protection
Commission, so there will be no appeals for mediation in the court. According to
the Consumer Protection (General) Rules, 2020, there can be no fee for cases up to Rs. 5
lakh. There are provisions for filing proceedings electronically, credit of amount because
of the unidentifiable consumer to Consumer Welfare Fund (CWF).
 The State Commissions will supply data to the Central Government on a quarterly
foundation basis on vacancies, disposal, the pendency of instances, and different matters.
During the earlier Consumer Protection Act, 1986, a single factor to get the right of entry
to justice was given, which is likewise time-consuming. The new Act has been delivered
after many amendments to offer safety to consumers from corrupt shopkeepers and also
from new e-trade retailers/platforms. The Act will show an important tool in protecting
the rights of consumers in the country.
The Cigarettes and other Tobacco Products (Prohibition of Advertisement and Regulation of
Trade and Commerce, Production, Supply, and Distribution) Act, 2003 (CTP Act)
The CTP Act prohibits the direct or oblique advertisement of cigarettes or other tobacco
merchandise in all styles of audio, visual, and print media (Section 5 of the CTP Act) and
presents that any individual in contravention of such prohibition might be at risk of being
punished with imprisonment of two years or fine of INR. 1,000 (Rupees One Thousand

Only) or both, which can be prolonged to a period of five (five) years or INR. 5,000 (Rupees
Five Thousand Only) or both (Section 22 of the CTP Act). The CTP Act additionally permits
authorized organizations, the power of search, seizure, forfeiture, and confiscation in
admiration of any commercial of cigarettes or other tobacco merchandise (Sections
12, 13, 14, and 23 of the CTP Act).
The Cable Television Networks (Regulations) Act, 1995 (CTN Act)

 The CTN Act prohibits anyone from rebroadcasting programs (including
advertisements under Section 2(g) of the CTN Act) through cable television unless
the guidelines provide for the same.
 As per Rule 7 of the Cable Television Networks (Amendment) Rules, 2006, a
body of rules framed under the CTN Act, cable service providers must ensure that
no such advertisement is aired that is offensive to the viewers‟ decency, morality,
and religious susceptibilities.Other laws related to advertising in India
Some Indian laws that apply to advertising include the following:

 Doordarshan/All India Radio (AIR) Advertisement Code
 Drugs and Cosmetics Act, 1940, Drugs (Control) Act, 1950
 Drugs and Magic Remedies (Objectionable Advertisements) Act, 1954
 Prenatal Diagnostic Techniques (Regulation and Prevention of Misuse) Act, 1994
 Pharmacy Act, 1948
 Prize Competitions Act, 1955
 Emblems and Names (Prevention of Improper Use) Act, 1950
 Indecent Representation of Women (Prohibition) Act, 1986
 Code of Ethics for Advertising in India (ASCI Code), issued by the Advertising
Standards Council of India (ASCI)
It is pertinent to note that the above-mentioned laws are fully exhaustive and there are various
other local, state, and central laws governing advertising.
E COMMERCE
The Consumer Protection Act has bolstered the regulatory approach towards consumer
protectionism and reinforced the legal framework for a timely and effective administration
and settlement of consumer disputes at a time when rapid developments in the modern age
retail trade and technology have led to a marketplace which is accessible by a click of a
button and is no longer shackled by the rigours of distance, location, space constraints,
opening hours, stock limitations or logistical challenges.
We have in an earlier article discussed the key implications of the Consumer Protection Act
on the ecommerce sector, and in this follow up piece, we assess and discuss the various
obligations and rights stemming from the Ecommerce Rules from the perspective of each of
the following key stakeholders in the e-commerce sector – ecommerce entities (marketplace
and inventory models), sellers and the consumers.
Applicability
The term “ecommerce entity” has been very broadly defined under the E-Commerce Rules to
mean/include “any person, who owns, operates or manages digital or electronic facility or
platform for electronic commerce, but does not include a seller offering his goods or services
for sale on a marketplace e-commerce entity” and the E-Commerce Rules apply to:
 all goods and services bought or sold over digital or electronic network including
digital products;

 all models of e-commerce, including marketplace and inventory models of e-

commerce;
 all e-commerce retail, including multi-channel single-brand retailers and single-brand
retailers in single or multiple formats; and/or
 all forms of unfair trade practices across all models of e-commerce.
The legislative intent to include all forms of e-commerce/retail models/entities – B2C, B2B
and B2B2C, whether incorporated in or outside India (but offering goods and services to
consumers in India), within the grip of the E-commerce Rules is abundantly clear.
Therefore, all types of e-commerce entities whether operating on the inventory model or the
marketplace model including e-commerce platforms that are engaged in providing services or
renting/leasing goods will fall within the meaning of “e-commerce entity” as defined under
the E-Commerce Rules and consequently will be subject to the legal regime prescribed under
the Consumer Protection Act and the E-Commerce Rules.
The Key Obligations Applying To Ecommerce Entities And Sellers

Ecommerce Entities
The E-Commerce Rules prescribe an elaborate framework for ecommerce entities to oversee
and prevent any unfair trade practices or misleading advertisements on part of the sellers on
their platform and obligate them to ensure that they do not engage in any price manipulation
and have in place adequate internal mechanism for the redressal of complaints by consumers.
Further, the Consumer Protection Act and the E-Commerce Rules also stipulate that an e-
commerce entity shall not directly or indirectly influence the sale price of goods or services
and shall maintain a level playing field for all sellers without any discrimination.
Pertinently, prior to the notification of the Consumer Protection Act and the E-Commerce
Rules, these obligations to restrain from influencing the sale price of goods or services and to
maintain a level playing field for all sellers without any discrimination were applicable only
in respect of e-commerce entities that had received foreign investment.
With these restrictions being introduced under the Consumer Protection Act and the E-
Commerce Rules as well, the Government has now created a uniform governing code for all
e-commerce entities in India (with or without foreign investment) and resolved the
abovementioned disparity.
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However, there are still some gaps between the requirements under the Foreign Exchange
Management (Non–Debt Instrument) Rules 2019 (NDI Rules) that apply only in respect of e-
commerce entities with foreign investment and the Consumer Protection Act/E-Commerce
Rules.
For instance, under the NDI Rules, an ecommerce entity with foreign investment is required
to obtain a report from a statutory auditor by 30 September every year confirming compliance
of the ecommerce guidelines under the NDI Rules for the preceding financial year; but this
requirement has not been prescribed under the Consumer Protection Act/E-Commerce Rules.
Given the above, the key implications emanating from the E-Commerce Rules that an e-
commerce entity should take note of:

Explicit And Affirmative Consent Of The Consumers

Interestingly, ecommerce entities are now required to obtain an express consent from its
consumers for the purchase of any good or service offered on its platform and this consent
can no longer be recorded automatically, not even in the form of pre-ticked checkboxes.
However, the exact tenor of this requirement is unclear – what actions of the consumers
would constitute „explicit‟ and „affirmative‟ consents have been not been elucidated in the E-
Commerce Rules. Would a consent which is accorded through a click wrap agreement be
sufficient to ensure compliance under the E-Commerce? Would this consent be required only
at the time of the registration by a consumer with an online e-commerce platform or would a
consent be required every time a consumer undertakes a purchase transaction?
A consumer typically accepts the terms and conditions of the marketplace (which are often
structured as a click wrap agreement) only once at the time of making an account with such
marketplace (and not at the time of every purchase) and these terms and conditions continue
to apply every time the consumer makes a purchase on the marketplace.
In our view, this requirement appears to be more relevant in cases/in respect of marketplaces
which allow the consumers to shop and check out from the website as a „guest’ without any
registration. In such cases, the exercise of such option by a consumer (by means of clicking at
the payment button at the time of checkout) automatically makes a consumer agree to the
terms and conditions of such purchase, without actually giving an opportunity to the
consumer to read and accept such terms and conditions.
Given this new legal requirement to procure an express consent of a consumer for the
purchase of any good or service, in our view, all e-commerce entities that allow a consumer
to checkout as a „guest‟ would now need to ensure that before a consumer checks out with the
purchase, the consumer is presented with the terms and conditions of such purchase and is
offered with an opportunity to read and provide his/her express consent for such purchase.
Price Manipulation
Price of the goods or services offered cannot be manipulated by the e-commerce entities to
gain unreasonable profits. The underlying intent behind this obligation is to ensure that a
level playing field is maintained for all sellers and no unfair method or deceptive practices
are adopted by an e-commerce entity (such as deep discounts, freebies, cash back offers
and/or EMI options) to influence transactional decisions of the consumers which favour a
particular seller.
In the past, there have been instances where certain e-commerce entities have witnessed
alleged claims of price manipulation involving deep discounts being offered on certain
products that were originally listed at prices which were more than the MRP of such
products. In fact, the National Consumer Disputes Redressal Commission and the District
Consumer Disputes Redressal Commission have in the past also held that listing goods at a
price higher than the MRP is an offence under the Consumer Protection Act.
The restriction on price manipulation and the allied requirements to ensure a level playing
field for all sellers was first introduced by the Government under the FDI policy in respect of
only those e-commerce entities which had foreign investments. With the inclusion of these
restrictions under the E-commerce Rules, all e-commerce entities in the country (with or

without foreign investment) would now need to ensure that all sellers compete without any
favouritism or bias in a transparent manner.
Consumer Discrimination And Disclosure Of Preferential Treatment To Sellers

Ecommerce entities have to now ensure that there is no discrimination between the
consumers of „same class‟ or make any classification amongst the consumers, which (directly
or indirectly) affects the rights of the consumers.
Separately, now it is also mandatory for e-commerce entities to disclose the terms and
conditions governing their relationship with sellers on their platforms including a description
of any differential treatment that a marketplace is providing to any particular seller(s) or in
respect of any goods or services in the „same category‟.
This requirement is clearly an extension of the aforementioned overarching restrictions,

namely, the restriction on influencing the sale price of the products or services that are listed
on the marketplace (whether directly or indirectly) and the obligation to maintain a level
playing field for all sellers in a ‘same category’.
Pertinently, there is no clarity, test or yardstick under the E-commerce Rules on what
constitutes a „same class‟ of consumers or „same category‟ of sellers or how should an e-
commerce entity segregate its consumers/sellers into different classes.
Therefore, the discretion in respect of classifying consumers into different classes or sellers
into different categories seems to be with the e-commerce entities and (in practice) may be
driven by parameters such as volume of sales/purchase, period of association and type of
products/services), subject to the rider that same treatment has to be ensured to all consumers
or sellers (as the case may be) forming part of „a particular class‟.
Cancellation Charges
No cancellation charges can be levied on a consumer, even where a consumer wants to cancel
a confirmed order, unless similar charges are also borne by the e-commerce entity if it
unilaterally cancels an order placed by a consumer for any reason whatsoever.
Timely Refunds
All refund requests are required to be completed within a „reasonable period of time‟. Every
e-commerce entity has a different policy in relation to refunds and there have been instances
where consumers have had to wait for a considerable amount of time to receive the refund
payments. Instead of prescribing an outer time limit for processing refund payments, the E-
commerce Rules have provided flexibility to within the overall contour of a reasonability test.
Again, what would constitute a „reasonable period of time‟ would not only differ from one e-
commerce entity to another, it would also differ from a consumer to consumer and be driven
by factors such as what was the mode of payment, the processing bank and the time period
underlying the returns.
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Grievance Redressal Officer

It is now mandatory for e-commerce entities to appoint a grievance redressal officer for
consumer grievance redressal and the details of such grievance officer, such as name, contact
details and the designation are required to be displayed on the online platforms. Also, such

officer will need to acknowledge the consumer complaint within 48 hours of receipt of the
complaint and redress the complaint within one month from the date of receipt of the
complaint.
Earlier, ever e-commerce entity had its own policy as regards the response time for consumer
complaints. However, this would provide for a minimum standard to be followed. Given the
population and number of consumers, such officer is going to have a herculean task in
acknowledging the complaints in the given time frame, and even if the former is complied
with, redressal of complaints in one month would certainly be a challenging task.
Nodal Person Of Contact

Apart from a grievance redressal officer, an e-commerce entity is now required to also
appoint a nodal person of contact or an alternate senior designated functionary (who is
resident in India) to ensure compliance with the provisions of Consumer Protection Act and
the E-Commerce Rules. Several e-commerce entities have already set up in-house legal and
compliance departments whose role is to ensure that there are no slippages in compliance
under the applicable legislations.
Nevertheless, with the requirement to identify and designate a senior official for overseeing
and ensuring compliance under the consumer protection law, issues regarding the personal
liability of such designated officials and protection from monetary exposures/risk of litigation
will now assume more importance whilst such employees are negotiating their employment
contract/engagement with the e-commerce marketplaces.
Complaint Token
It is compulsory for the e-commerce entities to allocate and provide a ticket number for each
consumer complaint for tracking the status of his/her complaint. This practice was already
prevalent as a good practice by several e-commerce entities, but now has been made
mandatory for all e-commerce entities.
Sellers
A number of obligations have also been cast on a seller who lists its goods or services on an
e-commerce platform. An overview of these obligations is as follows:
Written Contract
The E-commerce Rules prescribe that it is now mandatory for a seller to enter into a written
contract with an e-commerce entity in order to undertake any sale of goods and services on
the platform of such e-commerce entity. As a matter of practice, e-commerce entities used to
enter into a standard contract with a seller (before onboarding such seller on its platform) and
such a contract was usually in a form of a click wrap agreement which set out the terms and
conditions governing the sale of goods and services by such seller on the e-commerce entity‟s
marketplace.
Now, with the introduction of the E-commerce Rules and the obligation to ensure a written
contract between the seller and the e-commerce entity, both the parties are bound to relook at
the terms of these standard onboarding contracts to ensure a strict contractual allocation of
risks and responsibilities and a proper limitation of liability regime. Given the obligation to
disclose the details of any preferential treatment to a seller, it would be interesting to see how
deviations from the standard terms of the onboarding contract would play out from a
disclosure perspective.

False Or Misleading Advertisements

Each seller needs to ensure that (a) it does not impersonate itself as a consumer and post
reviews about the goods or services sold by it or misrepresent the quality or any features of
any goods or services; (b) it would not refuse to take back the goods or refuse to refund the
sale consideration, where the goods or services in question are defective, deficient or spurious
or if they do not conform to the advertised features or the promised delivery schedule; (c) it
would not advertise the goods or services offered in such a manner that are inconsistent with
the actual characteristics of such goods or services; and (d) the images/description used in
advertisements of goods or services offered, are consistent with the actual characteristics of
such goods or services.
While these measures would certainly act as a deterrent for the sellers, from an
implementation perspective, since the onus is also on the ecommerce platforms to ensure
compliance under the E-commerce Rules, it will certainly become a challenging and costly
task for the marketplaces, which in turn would result in an increased reliance on contractual
indemnity arrangements by the marketplaces.
Grievance Redressal Officer

The obligation of appointing a grievance redressal officer has also been extended to the
sellers. We are seeing that e-commerce entities are already taking adequate representations
from the sellers (at the time of onboarding) ensuing compliance with the obligations under
the E-commerce Rules.
Disclosure
In order to weed out unscrupulous sellers, the E-commerce Rules have made it mandatory for
the sellers to disclose certain prescribed information to the marketplace which information is
required to be displayed on the marketplace platform.
This information includes the legal name and address of the seller, contact details, customer
care number, applicable GSTIN, PAN, MRP breakup, postage and handling charges,
conveyance charges, applicable taxes, country of origin and expiry date of the goods, terms
of exchange, returns and refunds, cost of return shipping and any relevant guarantees or
warranties applicable on the goods or services.
Consumer Complaint Redressal Mechanism

In case of any deficiency in services, the consumer can approach Consumer Courts
constituted under the Act. After the commencement of new Consumer Protection Act, 2019,
consumer complaints can now be registered electronically. The whole adjudicating procedure
has been simplified by not just permitting electronic filing but, empowering and authorizing
District and State Consumer Forums to address to review applications and also advise
mediation (whenever feasible).
Consumer Courts is a 3-tier system of courts (National level, State level and District level)
where aggrieved consumers can approach as per the valuation of matter in concern, for
redressal and adjudication of disputes. Once the issues of the matter in dispute are
recognized, the further step is to understand the pecuniary limit/jurisdiction of the case.

Pecuniary Jurisdiction in Consumer Cases

Forum Value of Claim
District Consumer Disputes Redressal Rs. 1 Crore or less
Forum[9]:
State Consumer Disputes Redressal Between Rs. 1 Crore to Rs. 10 Crore.
Commission[10]
National Consumer Disputes Redressal More than Rs. 10 Crore
Commission[11]
1. Grievance Redressal Mechanism of Service provider- One of the first step that an
aggrieved Consumer shall consider is to approach the Grievance redressal mechanism or
authority of the service provider. For instance, most of the Insurance companies and
organizations have their Internal grievance redressal mechanism and an aggrieved
consumer can approach this mechanism or authority with his complaints before initiating
any legal action against the service provider.
2. Sending of Legal Notice: Prior to availing of statutory remedies and approaching
the Consumer Forum, it is advisable that the aggrieved consumer exhausts any
alternative legal remedies available to him/her. One of the actions that can be taken by
Consumer before approaching the Consumer Court is to send legal notice to the service
provider detailing the particulars of compliant, relief sought for, time period to comply
with the conditions and cautioning the service provider of legal recourse in the event of
non-compliance of terms and conditions of the notice.
3. File Consumer complaint before appropriate Forum- If the service provider fails to
comply with the terms and conditions mentioned in the legal notice or disagrees to
compensate for the loss caused, the complainant has the right to file a legal complaint in
the Consumer forum. It is pertinent to state that, sending of legal notice is not mandatory
and therefore, a complainant has the right to directly approach respective consumer forum
for filing of complaint.
Particulars of Compliant- The complaint must contain all the necessary details of the
complainant and service provider such as: name and address, relevant facts of the matter,
remedy sought, affidavit (signed and verified), all other relevant documents (bill details,
mode of payment, guarantee cards etc).
Limitation period to file Consumer Complaint- As per Section 35 of the Act, a consumer
complaint must be filed to respective District Forum within a span of two years from the date
on which the cause of action or deficiency in service or defect in goods arises. Nevertheless,
the law permits the Consumer or aggrieved to file a complaint even after the statutory period
of two years if the District Forum is satisfied that the complainant has genuine and valid
reasons for not filing the complaint within the specified time period.
Admissibility of Complaint by forum- Section 36 of the Act prescribes that, after the filing of
consumer complaint, District Forum shall revert on admissibility of the complaint within the
span of 21 days from the date of filing. Failing which shall be deemed to be admitted and
approved.
1. Mediation- According to Section 37 of the Act, if the respective Forum considers
mediation as a viable option for settlement, it may, with the consent of parties, advise
them to opt for mediation. In that case, contesting parties are required to provide written
consent within five days from such proposal, to the Forum. If mediation fails, case shall
fall back to the Forum. It is pertinent to mention that, according to Section 81(1), no

appeal can be filed and entertained by respective forum against the order passed by
Mediation.
2. Review application- If the complainant is not satisfied with the verdict passed by District
consumer forum, then he/she can file a review application in the same forum within 30
days from the date of pronouncement of order. In case the complainant is not satisfied by
the order on review application, the aggrieved can appeal to the next higher judicial
authority i.e., State Commission within 45 days from the date of passage of order.
3. Filing appeal with National Commission- Similarly, if the complainant is not satisfied
with the order passed by State Commission, aggrieved can file review application in the
same forum within a period of 30 days from the date of passage of order.[14] Otherwise,
if aggrieved by the order passed by State Forum, he can has the right to appeal to National
Forum within 30 days from the date of order given by previous forum.
Central Consumer Protection Authorities

One of the major drawbacks of the previous Act was that there were no protection authorities
in order to keep check, regulate and address the grievances of the consumers in an effective
and speedy manner. Chapter III of the 2019 Act provides with the Central Consumer
Protection Authority (CCPA) which has been added in order to regulate matters relating to
violation of rights of consumers, unfair trade practices and false or misleading advertisements
which are prejudicial to the interests of public and consumers and to promote, protect and
enforce the rights of consumers as a class. Central Authority shall consist of a Chief
Commissioner and such number of other Commissioners as may be prescribed, to be
appointed by the Central Government to exercise the powers and discharge the functions
under this Act. It will consist of an investigation wing headed by a Director-General for the
purpose of conducting inquiry or investigation under this Act as may be directed by the
Central Authority.
An appeal to an order passed by the CCPA on this issue can be filed before the National
Commission within a period of 30 days from the date of the receipt of such order.
How to make a complaint?

Section 17 states that a complaint relating to violation of consumer rights or unfair trade
practices or false or misleading advertisements which are prejudicial to the interests of
consumers as a class, may be forwarded either in writing or in electronic mode, to any one
of the authorities, namely, the District Collector or the Commissioner of Regional
Office or the Central Authority.
The Central Authority under Section 21 has been provided with the powers to issue
directions and penalties against false or misleading advertisements.
Consumer Dispute Redressal Commission (CDRC)

Chapter IV of the Act deals with the Establishment, Qualifications, Jurisdiction, Manner of
Complaint, Proceedings etc. regarding the Consumer Disputes Redressal Commission. CDRC
is empowered to resolve complaints with respect to unfair and restrictive trade practices,
defective goods and services, overcharging and goods which are a hazard to life and safety. It
has to be set up at three levels, i.e. the District, State and National levels (commissions). In
comparison to the old Act, the jurisdictions of the commissions have been enhanced.

District Consumer Disputes Redressal Commission (previously known as the District

Forum):
District Commission shall consist of a President and not less than two and not more than such
number of members as may be prescribed, in consultation with the Central Government. The
District Commission now has the jurisdiction to entertain complaints where the value of the
goods and services paid as consideration does not exceed one crore rupees. Section
34(2)(d) categorically states that the complaint can now also be instituted in a District
Commission within the local limits of whose jurisdiction the complainant resides or
personally works for gain, apart from filing in the jurisdiction where the other side actually or
voluntarily resides, or carries a business, or has a branch office or personally works for gain.
State Consumer Disputes Redressal Commission (previously known as the State

Commission):
The State Commission shall have jurisdiction to entertain the complaints where the
consideration exceeds one crore rupees but does not exceed ten crore rupees.
National Consumer Disputes Redressal Commission (previously known as the National

Commission):
The National Commission shall have the jurisdiction to entertain complaints where the
consideration paid exceeds ten crore rupees.
The jurisdiction in which the complaint is to be filed is now on the basis of the value of the
goods and services paid, which was not the case in the 1986 Act where it was on the value of
the goods and services and the compensation, if any, claimed. A great emphasis has been
placed on mediation which will be dealt with further.
Mediation
The Act has introduced a new chapter (Chapter V) on mediation as an alternate dispute
resolution mechanism in order to resolve the consumer dispute in a much faster way without
having to approach the Commissions. Thus, in the events where the mediation is successful in
whole, the terms of such agreement shall be reduced into writing accordingly. Where the
dispute is settled only in part, the Commission shall record the statement of the issues which
have been settled, and shall continue to hear the remaining issues involved in the dispute. In
case of unsuccessful mediation the respective Commission shall within seven days of the
receipt of the settlement report, pass a suitable order and dispose of the matter accordingly.
Offences and Penalties

Section 21(2) and Section 89 of the 2019 Act provides the Central Authority with the power
to impose a penalty in respect of any false or misleading advertisement, by a manufacturer
or an endorser, it may, by order, impose on manufacturer or endorser a penalty which may
extend to ten lakh rupees. Apart from this, a separate chapter (Chapter VII) for offences and
penalties has been introduced where detailed penalties and punishments have been mentioned
in relation to non-compliance, or manufacturing for sale or storing, selling or distributing or
importing products that are adulterated or spurious.
Related Rules and Regulations

 The Consumer Protection (E-Commerce) Rules, 2020 which are mandatory and are not
advisories, lay down all the important information relating to the e-commerce entities
keeping in mind both the consumer and the product/service provider. Key highlights are:

 E-commerce entities according to Rule 5 are required to provide

information to consumers, relating to return, refund, exchange, warranty and
guarantee, delivery and shipment, modes of payment, grievance redressal
mechanism, payment methods, security of payment methods, charge-back
options and country of origin.
 These platforms will have to acknowledge the receipt of any consumer
complaint within 48 hoursand redress the complaint within one month from
the date of receipt. They will also have to appoint a grievance officer for
consumer grievance redressal.
 Sellers cannot refuse to take back goods or withdraw services or refuse
refunds,if such goods or services are defective, deficient, delivered late, or if
they do not meet the description on the platform.
 The rules also prohibit the e-commerce companies from manipulating the
priceof the goods or services to gain unreasonable profit through unjustified
prices.
 As per the Consumer Protection (Consumer Disputes Redressal Commissions) Rules,
2020 which came into force on 20th July 2020, the amount of fee payable for filing the
complaint in the District Commission up to Rs 5 lakhs has been made Nil according to
Rule 7.
 The credit of the amount due to unidentifiable consumers will go to the Consumer
Welfare Fund(CWF).
 State Commissions will furnish information to the Central Government on a quarterly
basis on vacancies, disposal, the pendency of cases and other matters.
 Apart from these general rules, there are Central Consumer Protection Council
Rules, provided for the constitution of the Central Consumer Protection
Council(CCPC).
 It will be an advisory body on consumer issues, headed by the Union Minister of
Consumer Affairs, Food and Public Distribution with the Minister of State as Vice
Chairperson and 34 other members from different fields.
 It will have a three-year tenure and will have Minister-in-charge of consumer
affairs from two States from each region: North, South, East, West, and North-
East Region.
 The Delhi High Court while examining the concept of advertisement decided the case of,
Horlicks Ltd. v. Zydus Wellness Products Ltd., 2020 SCC OnLine Del 873
The High Court passed an interim order restraining Zydus from telecasting its advertisement
comparing Complan to Horlicks on the grounds that the same was misleading and
disparaging. The Court relied on various judgments on misleading advertisements,
disparagement and law governing publication of advertisements on television. Major
decisions were:
Dabur (India) Ltd. v. Colortek (Meghalaya) (P) Ltd., 2010 SCC OnLine Del 391
The Delhi High Court culled out the principles governing disparagement in the
advertisements and held:
On the basis of the law laid down by the Supreme Court, the guiding principles for us should
be the following:
i. An advertisement is commercial speech and is protected by Article 19(1)(a) of the
Constitution.
ii. An advertisement must not be false, misleading, unfair or deceptive.

iii.Of course, there would be some grey areas but these need not necessarily be taken as
serious representations of fact but only as glorifying one‟s product.
To this extent, in our opinion, the protection of Article 19(1)(a) of the Constitution is
available. However, if an advertisement extends beyond the grey areas and becomes a false,
misleading, unfair or deceptive advertisement, it would certainly not have the benefit of any
protection.
Pepsi Co. Inc. v. Hindustan Coca Cola Ltd., 2003 SCC OnLine Del 802
In Pepsi Co. it was held that certain factors had to be kept in mind while deciding the
question of disparagement. Those factors were:
i. Intent of the commercial,
ii. Manner of the commercial, and
iii. Story line of the commercial and the message sought to be conveyed.
These factors were amplified or restated in the following terms:

1) The intent of the advertisement – this can be understood from its story line and the
message sought to be conveyed.
2) The overall effect of the advertisement – does it promote the advertiser‟s product or does
it disparage or denigrate a rival product?
In this context it must be kept in mind that while promoting its product, the advertiser
may, while comparing it with a rival or a competing product, make an unfavorable
comparison but that might not necessarily affect the story line and message of the
advertised product or have that as its overall effect.
3) The manner of advertising – is the comparison by and large truthful or does it falsely
denigrate or disparage a rival product? While truthful disparagement is permissible,
untruthful disparagement is not permissible.”
Advertisement to Misleading Advertisement | Horlicks Ltd. v. Zydus Wellness Products
 In Connaught Plaza Restaurants Ltd. Kapil Mitra, 2020 SCC OnLine NCDRC 192
The complainant/respondent had participated in Mc Donald‟s widely published scheme „Mc

Donald‟s Mein Khao Har Bar Prize Le Jao‟ by placing two separate orders worth Rs 81. It
was alleged by the complainant that Connaught Plaza Restaurants Ltd. (CPRL) a franchisee
running Mc Donald restaurants has indulged in unfair trade practices by not giving the
assured prizes as per the scheme, rather put the participants under the obligation to make a
further purchase of a minimum Rs 20 in order to avail free French Fries. Also, the
complainant had to send two SMS giving the coupon numbers, for which Rs 3 per SMS were
charged. Moreover, the details of the entire scheme with its terms and conditions and the
result of the winners were also concealed from the participating customers. Therefore, the
complainant filed a consumer complaint before the District Forum praying to declare the
scheme as unfair trade practice and that Connaught Plaza Restaurants Ltd. be directed to
disclose the entire scheme and winners of the prizes. The District Forum allowed the
complaint and awarded compensation and costs to the complainant of Rs. 10,000 and
Rs.2,000.
Aggrieved, CPRL filed an appeal before the State Commission, but the State Commission
modified the order of the District Forum by enhancing the compensation and awarding
punitive damages to the tune of Rs. 2,00,000 and Rs. 10,00,000.

CPRL then appealed before the NCDRC. The NCDRC held that no proof had been filed by
the complainant that CPRL had collected the SMS charges or that it had an agreement with
the Telecom Company/Service provider on sharing of SMS charges. Thus, the order of the
State Commission could not be sustained on those grounds. On the other hand, it held that it
is also true that the scheme was an unfair trade practice followed by Connaught Plaza
Restaurants Ltd. This fact having been established by the concurrent findings given by the
District and the State Commission. The complainant and other similar customers who may
not have come forward to file a complaint need to be granted relief. Partly allowing the
appeal, the NCDRC reduced the amount of compensation to Rs. 30,000 and costs to Rs.
70,000 respectively.
 The National Consumer Disputes Redressal Commission (NCDRC) in the recent case
of, Ernakulam Medical Centre P.R. Jayasree, 2020 SCC Online NCDRC 490
observed that,
“Releasing a dead body by a hospital to an unrelated third person unquestionably constitutes
„deficiency in service‟ within the meaning of Section 2(1)(g) and (o) of Consumer Protection
Act, 1986.”
NCDRC | Releasing a dead body by a hospital to an unrelated third person

unquestionably constitutes „deficiency in service‟ within the meaning of S. 2(1) (g) & (o)
of Consumer Protection Act, 1986
 Recently, the Supreme Court in a judgment laid emphasis on the role of NCDRC
in Union of India N.K. Srivastava, 2020 SCC OnLine SC 636, wherein the Court had
dismissed an appeal which had aroused from an order of the National Consumer Disputes
Redressal Commission. The complaint alleged medical negligence against Sarvodaya
Hospital and Safdarjung Hospital. The NCDRC allowed the revision of Sarvodaya
Hospital. While exonerating it of the finding of medical negligence, it held Safdarjung
Hospital liable to pay the compensation of Rs 2 lakhs imposed by the State Consumer
Disputes Redressal Commission.
The District Forum had dismissed the consumer complaint stating that there was no
deficiency on the part of Sarvodaya Hospital in referring the complainant to a specialized
facility. An appeal was filed before the State Consumer Disputes Redressal Commission by
the original complainant. The SCDRC, by its judgment concluded that Sarvodaya Hospital
was guilty of medical negligence and directed it to pay a sum of Rs 2 lakhs as compensation
and costs quantified at Rs 20,000. However, the complaint was held not to be maintainable
against Safdarjung Hospital. A revision was filed against the judgment of the SCDRC by
Sarvodaya Hospital before the NCDRC which allowed the revision and came to the
conclusion that Sarvodaya Hospital was not guilty of medical negligence, however, the
NCDRC elaborated on the question as to whether Safdarjung Hospital had been correctly
exonerated. The NCDRC held that though the complainant had not filed a revision against the
order of the SCDRC specifically holding that Safdarjung Hospital was not amenable to the
jurisdiction of the consumer fora, he was not precluded from challenging a finding which was
adverse to him in the revision petition. On these facts, the NCDRC sustained the finding of
medical negligence against Safdarjung Hospital and directed it to pay compensation
quantified at Rs 2 lakhs.

Ragging: Prohibition, Prevention and Punishment
The University Grants Commission vide its letter no F.1-16/2007 (CPP-II) dated June 17,
2009 has reiterated the ban on ragging of students in Institutions of Higher Learning. The students
are therefore directed to strictly desist from any kind of ragging.
Forms of Ragging:
Display of noisy, disorderly conduct, teasing, excitement by rough or rude treatment or
handling, including rowdy, undisciplined activities which cause or likely to cause annoyance,
undue hardship, physical or psychological harm or raise apprehensive fear in a fresher, or asking
the students to do any act or perform something which such a student will not do in the ordinary
course and which causes him/her shame or embarrassment or danger to his/her life, etc.
Punishment for Participation in/or Abetment of Ragging :
1. Cancellation of admission.
2. Suspension from attending classes.
3. Withholding/withdrawing scholarship/fellowship and other benefits.
4. Debarring from appearing in any test/examination or other evaluation process.
5. Withholding results.
6. Debarring from representing the institution in any national or international meet,
tournament, youth festival, etc.
7. Suspension/expulsion from the hostel.
8. Rustication from the institution for periods varying from 1 to 4 semesters or
equivalent period.
9. Expulsion from the institution and consequent debarring from admission to any
other institution.
10 Fine up to Rs. 25,000/-
Affidavit by students and parents
Each student and his/her parents/ guardian shall have to furnish an affidavit alongwith the
application form to the effect that they will not participate in or abet the act of ragging and that, if
found guilty, shall be liable for punishment under the penal law of India.
SELF DECLARATION BY PARENTS/GUARDIANS
1. Mr./Mrs./Ms. __________________________________________________________ (full name) of

parents/guardians) father/mother/guardian of full name of student with admission/registration/
enrollment number), having been admitted to (name of the institution), have received a copy of
the UGC Regulations on Curbing the Menace of Ragging in Higher Educational Institutions, 2009,
(hereinafter called the "Regulations"), carefully read and fully understood the provisions contained
in the said Regulations.
2) I have, in particular, perused clause 3 of the Regulations and am aware as to what
constitutes ragging.
3) I have also, in particular, perused clause 7 and clause 9.1 of the Regulations and am fully
aware of the penal and administrative action that is liable to be taken against my ward in case
he/she is found guilty of or abetting ragging, actively or passively, or being part of a conspiracy to
promote ragging.
4) I hereby solemnly aver and undertake that :
a) My ward will not indulge in any behaviour or act that may be constituted as ragging
under clause 3 of the Regulations.
b) My ward will not participate in or abet or propagate through any act of commission
or omission that may be constituted as ragging under clause 3 of the Regulations.
5) I hereby affirm that, if found guilty of ragging, my ward is liable for punishment according
to clause 9.1 of the Regulations, without prejudice to any other criminal action that may be taken
against my ward under any penal law or any law for the time being in force.
6) I hereby declare that my ward has not been expelled or debarred from admission in any
institution in the country on account of being found guilty of, abetting or being part of a conspiracy
to promote, ragging; and further affirm that, in case the declaration is found to be untrue, the
admission of my ward is liable to be cancelled.
Declared this _________________ day of _________ month of __________ year.
Signature of Father/Mother/Guardian
Name : ___________________________
Address:_________________________
Telephone/Mobile No._______________
Self Declaration by Parents/Guardian

Verified that the contents of this self declaration are true to the best of my knowledge and no part of
the self declaration is false and nothing has been concealed or misstated therein.
Verified at (Place) on this the (day) of (month), (year)
Signature of Father/Mother/Guardian
SELF DECLARATION BY THE STUDENT
I full name of student with admission/registration/enrolment number) s/o d/o

Sh. __________________________________________________, having been admitted to
name of the institution , have reveived a copy of the UGC Regulations on Curbing
the Menance of Ragging in HIgher Education Institutions, 2009, (hereinafter called the
"Regulations") carefully read and fully understood the ;provisions contained in the said Regulations.
2) I have, in particular, perused clause 3 of the Regulations and am aware as to what
constitutes ragging.
3) I have also, in particular, perused clause 7 and clause 9.1 of the Regulations and am fully
aware of the penal and administrative action that is liable to be taken against me in case I am found
guilty of or abetting ragging, actively or passively, or being part of a conspiracy to promote ragging.
4) I hereby solemnly aver and undertake that
a) I will not indulged in any behaviour or act that may be constituted as ragging under
clause 3 of the regulations.
b) I will not participate in or abet or propagate through any act of commission or omission
that may be constituted as ragging under clause 3 of the Regulations.
5) I hereby affirm that, if found guilty of ragging, I am liable for punishment according to
clause 9.1 of the Regulations, without prejudice to any other criminal action that may be taken
against me under any penal law or any law for the time being in force.
6) I hereby declare that I have not been expelled or debarred from admission in any institution
in the country on account of being found guilty of, abetting or being part of a conspiracy to
promote, ragging; and further affirm that, in case the declaration is found to be untrue, I am aware
that my admission is liable to be cancelled.
Declared this _____day of _________month of _________year.
Signature of Student
Name : ___________________________
Address:___________________________
Telephone/Mobile No._______________
SELF DECLARATION
Verified that the contents of this self declaration are true to the best of my knowledge and no part of
the declaration is false and nothing has been concealed or misstated therein.
Verified at (place) on this the day of month , (year).
Signature of student
Clause -3 What constitutes Ragging : -
Ragging constitutes one or any of the follows acts:-
Any conduct by any student or students whether by words spoken or written or by an act which
has the effect of teasing, treating or handling with rudeness a fresher or any other student.
Indulging in rowdy or indisciplined activities by any student or students which causes or is likely
to cause annoyance, hardship, physical or psychological harm or to raise fear or apprehension
thereof in any fresher or any other student;
Asking any student to do any act which such student will not in the ordinary course do and which
has the effect of causing or generating a sense of shame, or torment or embarrassment so as to
adversely affect the physique or psyche of such fresher or any other student.
Any act by a senior student that prevents, disrupts or disturbs the regular academic activity of any
other student or a fresher;
Exploiting the services of a fresher or any other student for completing the academic tasks assigned
to an individual or a group of students.
Any act of financial extortion or forceful expenditure burden put on a fresher or any other student
by students;
Any act of physical abuse including all variants of it: sexual abuse, homosexual assaults, stripping,
forcing obscene and lewd acts, gestures, causing bodily harm or any other danger to health or
person;
Any act or abuse by spoken words, emails, post, public insults which would also include deriving
perverted pleasure, vicarious or sadistic thrill from actively or passively participating in the
discomfiture to fresher or any other student;
Any act that affects the mental health and self-confidence of a fresher or any other student.
with or without an intent to derive a sadistic pleasure or showing off power, authority or superiority
by a student over any fresher or any other student.
Clause -7 Action to be taken by the Head of the institution : -
On receipt of the recommendation of the Anti Ragging Squad or on receipt of any information
concerning any reported incident of ragging, the Head of Institution shall immediately determine if
a case under the penal laws is made and if so, either on his own or through a member of the Anti-
Ragging Committee authorized by him in this behalf, proceed to file a First Information Report
(FIR), within twenty four hours of receipt of such information or recommendation, with the police
and local authorities, under the appropriate penal provisions relating to one or more of the
following, namely;
i Abetment to ragging;
ii Criminal conspiracy to rag;
iii Unlawful assembly and rioting while ragging;
iv Public nuisance created during ragging;
v Violation of decency and morals through ragging;
vi Injury to body, causing hurt or grievous hurt;
vii Wrongful restraint;
viii Wrongful confinement;
ix Use of criminal force;
x Assault as well as sexual offences or unnatural offences;
xi Extortion;
xii Criminal trespass;
xiii Offences against property;
xiv Criminal intimidation;
xv. Attempts to commit any or all of the above mentioned offences against the victim(s);
xvi. Threat to commit any or all of the above mentioned offences against the victim(s);
xvii. Physical or psychological humilliation;
xviii. All other offences following from the definition of "Ragging"
Provided that the Head of institution shall forthwith report the occurrence of the incident of
ragging to the District Level Anti-Ragging Committee and the Nodal officer of the affiliating
University, if the institution is an affiliated institution.
Provided further that the institution shall also continue with its own enquiry initiated under
clause 9 of these Regulations and other measures without waiting for action on the part of the
police/local authorities and such remedial action shall be initiated and completed immediately and
in no case later than a period of seven days of the reported occurrence of the incident of ragging.
Clause -9 Administrative action in the event of ragging: -
9.1 The institution shall punish a student found guilty of ragging after following the procedure
and in the manner prescribed hereinunder:-
a) The Anti-Ragging Committee of the institution shall take an appropriate decision, in regard
to punishment or otherwise, depending on the facts of each incident of ragging and nature and
gravity of the incident of ragging established in the recommendations of the Anti-Ragging Squad.
b) The Anti-Ragging Committee may, depending on the nature and gravity of the guilt
established by the Anti-Ragging Squad, award, to those found guilty, one or more of the following
punishments, namely;
i Suspension from attending classes and academic privileges.
ii Withholding/withdrawing scholarship/fellowship and other benefits.
iii Debarring from appearing in any test/examination or other evaluation process.
iv Withholding results.
v Debarring from representing the institution in any regional, national or international meet,
tournament, youth festival etc.
vi Suspension/expulsion from the hostel.
vii Cancellation of admission
viii Rustication from the institution for period ranging from one to four semesters.
ix Expulsion from the institution and consequent debarring from admission to any other
institution for a specified period.
Provided that whether the persons committing or abetting the act of ragging are not
identified, the institution shall resort to collective punishment.
c) An appeal against the order of punishment by the Anti-Ragging Committee shall lie,
i In case of an order of an institution, affiliated to or constituent part, of a University, to the

Vice Chancellor of the University.
ii In case of an order of University, to its Chancellor
iii In case of an institution of national importance created by an Act of Parliament, to the
Chairman or Chancellor of the institution, as the case may be.
NSPE Code of ethics:
Preamble
Engineering is an important and learned profession. As members of this profession, engineers are
expected to exhibit the highest standards of honesty and integrity. Engineering has a direct and vital
impact on the quality of life for all people. Accordingly, the services provided by engineers require
honesty, impartiality, fairness and equity, and must be dedicated to the protection of the public health,
safety, and welfare. Engineers must perform under a standard of professional behavior that requires
adherence to the highest principles of ethical conduct.
I. Fundamental Canons
Engineers, in the fulfillment of their professional duties, shall:
1. Hold paramount the safety, health and welfare of the public.
2. Perform services only in areas of their competence.
3. Issue public statements only in an objective and truthful manner.
4. Act for each employer or client as faithful agents or trustees.
5. Avoid deceptive acts.
6. Conduct themselves honorably, responsibly, ethically, and lawfully so as to enhance
the honor, reputation, and usefulness of the profession.
II. Rules of Practice
1. Engineers shall hold paramount the safety, health, and welfare of the public.
a. If engineers' judgment is overruled under circumstances that endanger life or property, they shall
notify their employer or client and such other authority as may be appropriate.
b. Engineers shall approve only those engineering documents that are in conformity with applicable
standards.
c. Engineers shall not reveal facts, data or information without the prior consent of the client or
employer except as authorized or required by law or this Code.
d. Engineers shall not permit the use of their name or associate in business ventures with any person
or firm that they believe are engaged in fraudulent or dishonest enterprise.
e. Engineers having knowledge of any alleged violation of this Code shall report thereon to
appropriate professional bodies and, when relevant, also to public authorities, and cooperate with the
proper authorities in furnishing such information or assistance as may be required.
2. Engineers shall perform services only in the areas of their competence.
a. Engineers shall undertake assignments only when qualified by education or experience in the
specific technical fields involved.
b. Engineers shall not affix their signatures to any plans or documents dealing with subject matter in
which they lack competence, nor to any plan or document not prepared under their direction and
control.
c. Engineers may accept assignments and assume responsibility for coordination of an entire project
and sign and seal the engineering documents for the entire project, provided that each technical
segment is signed and sealed only by the qualified engineers who prepared the segment.
3. Engineers shall issue public statements only in an objective and truthful manner.
a. Engineers shall be objective and truthful in professional reports, statements, or testimony. They
shall include all relevant and pertinent information in such reports, statements, or testimony, which
should bear the date indicating when it was current.
b. Engineers may express publicly technical opinions that are founded upon knowledge of the facts
and competence in the subject matter.
c. Engineers shall issue no statements, criticisms, or arguments on technical matters that are inspired
or paid for by interested parties, unless they have prefaced their comments by explicitly identifying
the interested parties on whose behalf they are speaking, and by revealing the existence of any interest
the engineers may have in the matters.
4. Engineers shall act for each employer or client as faithful agents or trustees.
a. Engineers shall disclose all known or potential conflicts of interest that could influence or appear to
influence their judgment or the quality of their services.
b. Engineers shall not accept compensation, financial or otherwise, from more than one party for
services on the same project, or for services pertaining to the same project, unless the circumstances
are fully disclosed and agreed to by all interested parties.
c. Engineers shall not solicit or accept financial or other valuable consideration, directly or indirectly,
from outside agents in connection with the work for which they are responsible.
d. Engineers in public service as members, advisors, or employees of a governmental or quasi-
governmental body or department shall not participate in decisions with respect to services solicited
or provided by them or their organizations in private or public engineering practice.
e. Engineers shall not solicit or accept a contract from a governmental body on which a principal or
officer of their organization serves as a member.
5. Engineers shall avoid deceptive acts.
a. Engineers shall not falsify their qualifications or permit misrepresentation of their or their
associates' qualifications. They shall not misrepresent or exaggerate their responsibility in or for the
subject matter of prior assignments. Brochures or other presentations incident to the solicitation of
employment shall not misrepresent pertinent facts concerning employers, employees, associates, joint
venturers, or past accomplishments.
b. Engineers shall not offer, give, solicit or receive, either directly or indirectly, any contribution to
influence the award of a contract by public authority, or which may be reasonably construed by the
public as having the effect of intent to influencing the awarding of a contract. They shall not offer any
gift or other valuable consideration in order to secure work. They shall not pay a commission,
percentage, or brokerage fee in order to secure work, except to a bona fide employee or bona fide
established commercial or marketing agencies retained by them.
III. Professional Obligations
1. Engineers shall be guided in all their relations by the highest standards of honesty and
integrity.
a. Engineers shall acknowledge their errors and shall not distort or alter the facts.
b. Engineers shall advise their clients or employers when they believe a project will not be successful.
c. Engineers shall not accept outside employment to the detriment of their regular work or interest.
Before accepting any outside engineering employment they will notify their employers.
d. Engineers shall not attempt to attract an engineer from another employer by false or misleading
pretenses.
e. Engineers shall not actively participate in strikes, picket lines, or other collective coercive action.
f. Engineers shall not promote their own interest at the expense of the dignity and integrity of the
profession.
2. Engineers shall at all times strive to serve the public interest.
a. Engineers shall seek opportunities to participate in civic affairs; career guidance for youths; and
work for the advancement of the safety, health and well-being of their community.
b. Engineers shall not complete, sign, or seal plans and/or specifications that are not in conformity
with applicable engineering standards. If the client or employer insists on such unprofessional
conduct, they shall notify the proper authorities and withdraw from further service on the project.
c. Engineers shall endeavor to extend public knowledge and appreciation of engineering and its
achievements.
3. Engineers shall avoid all conduct or practice that deceives the public.
a. Engineers shall avoid the use of statements containing a material misrepresentation of fact or
omitting a material fact.
b. Consistent with the foregoing, Engineers may advertise for recruitment of personnel.
c. Consistent with the foregoing, Engineers may prepare articles for the lay or technical press, but
such articles shall not imply credit to the author for work performed by others.
4. Engineers shall not disclose, without consent, confidential information concerning the
business affairs or technical processes of any present or former client or employer, or public
body on which they serve.
a. Engineers shall not, without the consent of all interested parties, promote or arrange for new
employment or practice in connection with a specific project for which the Engineer has gained
particular and specialized knowledge.
b. Engineers shall not, without the consent of all interested parties, participate in or represent an
adversary interest in connection with a specific project or proceeding in which the Engineer has
gained particular specialized knowledge on behalf of a former client or employer.
5. Engineers shall not be influenced in their professional duties by conflicting interests.
a. Engineers shall not accept financial or other considerations, including free engineering designs,
from material or equipment suppliers for specifying their product.
b. Engineers shall not accept commissions or allowances, directly or indirectly, from contractors or
other parties dealing with clients or employers of the Engineer in connection with work for which the
Engineer is responsible.
6. Engineers shall not attempt to obtain employment or advancement or professional
engagements by untruthfully criticizing other engineers, or by other improper or questionable
methods.
a. Engineers shall not request, propose, or accept a commission on a contingent basis under
circumstances in which their judgment may be compromised.
b. Engineers in salaried positions shall accept part-time engineering work only to the extent consistent
with policies of the employer and in accordance with ethical considerations.
c. Engineers shall not, without consent, use equipment, supplies, laboratory, or office facilities of an
employer to carry on outside private practice.
7. Engineers shall not attempt to injure, maliciously or falsely, directly or indirectly, the
professional reputation, prospects, practice, or employment of other engineers. Engineers who
believe others are guilty of unethical or illegal practice shall present such information to the
proper authority for action.
a. Engineers in private practice shall not review the work of another engineer for the same client,
except with the knowledge of such engineer, or unless the connection of such engineer with the work
has been terminated.
b. Engineers in governmental, industrial, or educational employ are entitled to review and evaluate the
work of other engineers when so required by their employment duties.
c. Engineers in sales or industrial employ are entitled to make engineering comparisons of represented
products with products of other suppliers.
8. Engineers shall accept personal responsibility for their professional activities, provided,
however, that Engineers may seek indemnification for services arising out of their practice for
other than gross negligence, where the Engineer's interests cannot otherwise be protected.
a. Engineers shall conform with state registration laws in the practice of engineering.
b. Engineers shall not use association with a nonengineer, a corporation, or partnership as a "cloak"
for unethical acts.
9. Engineers shall give credit for engineering work to those to whom credit is due, and will
recognize the proprietary interests of others.
a. Engineers shall, whenever possible, name the person or persons who may be individually
responsible for designs, inventions, writings, or other accomplishments.
b. Engineers using designs supplied by a client recognize that the designs remain the property of the
client and may not be duplicated by the Engineer for others without express permission.
c. Engineers, before undertaking work for others in connection with which the Engineer may make
improvements, plans, designs, inventions, or other records that may justify copyrights or patents,
should enter into a positive agreement regarding ownership.
d. Engineers' designs, data, records, and notes referring exclusively to an employer's work are the
employer's property. Employer should indemnify the Engineer for use of the information for any
purpose other than the original purpose.
As Revised July 1996
"By order of the United States District Court for the District of Columbia, former Section 11(c) of the
NSPE Code of Ethics prohibiting competitive bidding, and all policy statements, opinions, rulings or
other guidelines interpreting its scope, have been rescinded as unlawfully interfering with the legal
right of engineers, protected under the antitrust laws, to provide price information to prospective
clients; accordingly, nothing contained in the NSPE Code of Ethics, policy statements, opinions,
rulings or other guidelines prohibits the submission of price quotations or competitive bids for
engineering services at any time or in any amount."
Statement by NSPE Executive Committee
In order to correct misunderstandings which have been indicated in some instances since the issuance
of the Supreme Court decision and the entry of the Final Judgment, it is noted that in its decision of
April 25, 1978, the Supreme Court of the United States declared: "The Sherman Act does not require
competitive bidding."
It is further noted that as made clear in the Supreme Court decision:
1. Engineers and firms may individually refuse to bid for engineering services.
2. Clients are not required to seek bids for engineering services.
3. Federal, state, and local laws governing procedures to procure engineering services are not
affected, and remain in full force and effect.
4. State societies and local chapters are free to actively and aggressively seek legislation for
professional selection and negotiation procedures by public agencies.
5. State registration board rules of professional conduct, including rules prohibiting competitive
bidding for engineering services, are not affected and remain in full force and effect. State
registration boards with authority to adopt rules of professional conduct may adopt rules
governing procedures to obtain engineering services.
6. As noted by the Supreme Court, "nothing in the judgment prevents NSPE and its members
from attempting to influence governmental action . . ."
NOTE: In regard to the question of application of the Code to corporations vis-à-vis real persons,
business form or type should not negate nor influence conformance of individuals to the Code. The
Code deals with professional services, which services must be performed by real persons. Real
persons in turn establish and implement policies within business structures. The Code is clearly
written to apply to the Engineer and items incumbent on members of NSPE to endeavor to live up to
its provisions. This applies to all pertinent sections of the Code.
Engineering is the process of developing an efficient mechanism which quickens and eases the work
using limited resources, with the help of technology. Ethics are the principles accepted by the society,
which also equate to the moral standards of human beings. An engineer with ethics, can help the
society in a better way.
Hence the study of Engineering ethics, where such ethics are implemented in engineering by the
engineers, is necessary for the good of the society. Engineering Ethics is the study of decisions,
policies and values that are morally desirable in engineering practice and research.
Morals
The word “Morality” originates from the Latin word “mos” meaning “custom”. Morals are the
principles or habits with respect to right or wrong of one’s own conduct. They are not imposed by
anyone. Morals are what you think is good and bad personally.
Though morals are not imposed, they can be understood as the preaching of our inner self.
Depending on a few factors, our mind filters things as good or bad. These are the ideas that help
frame our personality so that we can distinguish between what is right and what is wrong.
A moral is the code of conduct that you develop over time and set for yourself to follow, just like
 Being good to everyone
 Speaking only the truth
 Going against what you know is wrong
 Having chastity
 Avoid cheating
 Being a nice human being etc.
Morals are always defined by one’s own personality. Morals can be changed according to one’s
beliefs as they are completely dependent on one’s perception towards the ethical values.
Ethics
The word “Ethics” originates from the Greek word “ethos” meaning “character”. Ethics are a set of
rules or principles that are generally considered as standards or good and bad or right and wrong,
which are usually imposed by an external group or a society or a profession or so.
Ethics can be understood as the rules of conduct proposed by a society or recognized with respect to
a particular class of human actions or a particular group or culture. Ethics are dependent on others
definition. They may or may not vary from context to context.
A person who strictly follows a set of ethical principles, may not have any moral at all while a
person who violates ethical principles at times, may maintain a high moral integrity. The ethical
theories include duty ethics, right ethics, virtue ethics and so on. A best example that can explain
ethics is utilitarianism.
Utilitarianism is the philosophy which explains that the happiness or pleasure of a greatest number
of people in the society is considered as the greatest good. According to this philosophy, an action is
morally right if its consequences leads to happiness of the people and wrong if the action leads to
their unhappiness. This theory moves beyond the scope of one’s own interests and takes into account
the interests of others.
Ethics in Engineering
Ethics are principles followed depending upon the moral responsibility that a person feels. The study
of related questions about moral ideals, character, policies and relationships of people and
organizations involved in technological activity, can be termed as Engineering ethics.
An engineer whether he works individually or works for a company, has to go through some ethical
issues, mostly under the conditions such as, conceptualization of a product, issues arising in design
and testing departments, or may be on the issues involving the manufacturing, sales and services.
Questions related to morality also arise during supervision and team works.
The ethical decisions and moral values of an engineer need to be considered because the decisions of
an engineer have an impact the products and services - how safe they are to use, the company and its
shareholders who believe in the goodwill of the company, the public and the society who trusts the
company regarding the benefits of the people, the law which cares about how legislation affects the
profession and industry, the job and his moral responsibilities and about how the environment gets
affected, etc.
Not only an engineer, but everyone has to follow a set of morals in order to keep away from getting
morally degraded. Our behavior should include the following −
 Respecting others and ourselves.
 Respecting the rights of others.
 Keeping promises.
 Avoiding unnecessary problems to others.
 Avoiding cheating and dishonesty.
 Showing gratitude towards others and encourage them to work.
Morality commands respect for persons, both others and ourselves. It involves being fair and just,
meeting obligations and respecting rights and not causing unnecessary harm by dishonesty and
cruelty or by hubris.
Steps to Deal with Issues
Whenever there occurs an issue, one should possess a few skills in order to sort out the problem. The
issues that engineers face, have to be dealt with patience and few moral goals have to be kept in
mind while dealing with such issues. They are as follows −
 Moral Awareness − One should be able to recognize the moral problems and issues that
occur in Engineering. The analysis on the problem is necessary in order to differentiate and
judge according to ethics or according to the rules to follow.
 Cogent Moral Reasoning − In order to come to a conclusion on an issue, the argument has
to be assessed and comprehended. The argument on both sides has to be considered with all
the probabilities and the nature of the argument should be logical and moral.
 Moral Coherence − After having gone through all the logical and moral facts, consistent and
comprehensive view points are to be formed based upon a consideration of relevant facts.
 Moral Imagination − The moral issues and the practical issues have to be dealt separately.
Alternative responses are to be found out for dealing with moral issues while creative
solutions should be found out for practical difficulties.
 Moral Communication − The language to communicate about one’s moral views should be
so precise and clear, that the expression or words should not alter the original meaning.
Though one has all these moral goals, the ethical reasoning for achieving moral conduct with
responsibility and commitment is obtained by a few skills that are described below.
Important Skills for Ethical Reasoning
Let us now discuss the important skills for ethical reasoning −
 Moral Reasonableness − The ability and willingness to be morally reasonable that one
should have while dealing such issues. Unless one is willing and improve such ability,
justice cannot be done.
 Respect for Persons − The persons involved in the issue, should be treated with genuine
concern by one. Such concern should also be there with oneself along with being there for
others.
 Tolerance of diversity − One should have a broader perspective towards ethnic and religious
differences that the people have. Every person differs with another when compared on
grounds of moral reasoning. The acceptance of those differences is really important.
 Moral hope − The moral conflicts can be resolved by using better communication and
having rational dialogue which is evident-based and open-ended which is acceptable and
appreciable by both the parties.
 Integrity − The moral integrity has to be maintained. Being honest and having strong moral
principles helps one to resolve an issue in an efficient manner. An individual also needs to
consider other’s professional life and personal convictions while solving a problem.
A moral issue can be understood as an issue to be resolved not only by considering the technical
stuff but also by keeping moral values in mind. To be more precise, let us consider the definition in
general.
“Moral issue is a working definition of an issue of moral concern is presented as any issue with the
potential to help or harm anyone, including oneself.”
Types of Moral Issues
There are mainly two types of Moral issues that we mostly come across while keeping the ethical
aspects in mind to respond. They are −
Micro-ethics
This approach stresses more on the problems that occur on a daily basis in the field of engineering
and its practice by engineers.
Macro-ethics
This approach deals with social problems which are unknown. However, these problems may
unexpectedly face the heat at both regional and national levels.
Types of Inquiries
The issues can be resolved by following an investigation procedure, step by step in order to have a
clear understanding towards the issue. Here we have three different types of inquiries.
Judging the issues has to be followed by a systematic procedure to avoid any flaws. Engineering
ethics involves investigations into values, meanings and facts. Following are the different types of
inquiries made for this.
 Normative inquiries
 Conceptual inquiries
 Factual or descriptive inquiries
Normative Inquiries
Normative Inquiry refers to the description that describes what one ought to do under a specific
circumstance. This is the expected ideal response, which might differ from what one believes to be
right or wrong.
This list identifies and justifies the morally desirable nature for guiding individuals or groups. This
includes the responsibility of engineers to protect the public safety and how they should respond
under such dangerous practices. Normative inquiries also quote the laws and procedures that affect
the engineering practice on moral grounds. They refer to the thought process where the moral rights
are to be implemented in order to fulfill their professional obligations.
Conceptual Inquiries
Conceptual Inquiry refers to the description of the meaning of concepts, principles and issues related
to engineering ethics. The ethics that an engineer should possess to protect the safety, health and
welfare of the public, etc. are described under conceptual inquiries.
It describes what safety is and mentions the marginal issues of safety along with the precautions an
engineer should take to avoid risk. Conceptual inquiries mention the moral aspects of bribery and
how its effects, along with the professional ethics and professionalism.
Factual and Descriptive Inquiries
Factual Inquiry or the descriptive inquiry help to provide the facts for understanding and finding
solutions to the value based issues. The engineer has to conduct factual inquiries by using scientific
techniques.
This helps in providing the information regarding the business realities such as engineering practice,
history of engineering profession, the effectiveness of professional societies, the procedures to be
adopted when assessing risks and psychological profiles of engineers.
Let us now go through the concept of Moral dilemma that a person faces when confronted with a
situation.
At times, the situations occur where one cannot make immediate decisions as the moral reasons
come into conflict. The moral reasons can be rights, duties, goods or obligations, which make the
decision making complex.
Types of Complexities
The difficulties in arriving to a solution, when segregated, can be divided into the following three
sections.
Vagueness
This refers to the condition where the doubt lies in whether the action refers to good or bad. This is
just like having a thought that following the rules is mandatory. This sometimes includes the
unwritten rules like being loyal, having respect, maintaining confidentiality, etc.
Conflicting reasons
When you know about the solutions you have, the making of better choice among the ones you have,
will be the internal conflict. Fixing the priorities depends upon the knowledge and the moral values
one has. The reason why the particular choice is being made, makes sense.
Disagreement
When there are two or more solutions and none among them is mandatory, the final solution selected
should be best suitable under existing and the most probable conditions. The interpretation regarding
the moral reasons behind the choice and analysis should be made keeping in mind whether this is the
better or the worse solution in the probable aspects.
Steps in Facing Moral Dilemmas
Whenever a person is faced with a moral dilemma, the issue is to be solved with a stepwise approach
as this will generate a better output. The steps include the following −
Identification
The step of identification involves the following −
 The issue has to be thoroughly understood.
 The duties and the responsibilities of the persons involved are to be clearly known.
 The moral factors related to the issue are to be understood.
 The conflicting responsibilities, the competing rights and the clashing ideas involved are to
be identified.
Ranking
The considerations in the issue are to be listed down. Then they have to be ranked according to the
priorities. The moral aspect has to be considered to rank the issues. The advantages of a single
person should never be given any importance unless any moral reason is there behind it. No partiality
is allowed.
Inquiries
The inquiry of details involved in the issue is to be completely made. All the facts related to the issue
are brought into light. Considering the alternative courses of action for resolving and tracing, full
implications are also needed.
Discussions
Discussions are to be made with other members, as different minds look at the issue in different
views to give different solutions. The complete analysis of a problem gives chances to different
viewpoints, perspectives and opinions from which a better solution can be drawn.
Final Solution
After analyzing different perspectives and considering the facts and reasons on the basis of truths and
understanding the flaws which lead to the issue, a final solution has to be drawn out. This solution
will add value to the whole analysis, in all aspects.
Moral Autonomy is the philosophy which is self-governing or self-determining, i.e., acting
independently without the influence or distortion of others. The moral autonomy relates to the
individual ideas whether right or wrong conduct which is independent of ethical issues. The concept
of moral autonomy helps in improving self-determination.
Moral Autonomy is concerned with independent attitude of a person related to moral/ethical issues.
This concept is found in moral, ethical and even in political philosophy.
Moral Autonomy – Skills Needed
In this section, let us discuss the skills needed for moral autonomy.
 Ability to relate the problems with the problems of law, economics and religious
principles − It is essential to have the ability to analyze a problem and finding the relation
with the existing law or the topic of issue with the existing principles on that topic. The
ability to distinguish between both of them and finding the moral reasons.
 Skill to process, clarify and understand the arguments against the moral issues − If the
issue is against some moral values or the ethical values to be followed in the society, then
clarity should be maintained about the differences and similarities. Both of these differences
and similarities are to be judged based on why they are a matter of concern and in what
aspect.
 Ability to suggest the solutions to moral issues on the basis of facts − If the moral issues
are not fulfilling and needs to be, then the solutions are to be suggested according to the
moral issues based on the facts and truths of the issue. These suggestions must be consistent
and must include all the aspects of the problem. No partiality is to be allowed in any such
aspect.
 Must have the imaginative skill to view the problems from all the viewpoints − After
having known about the facts and illusions of the issue, a clear understanding is attained in
viewing the problem in all kinds of viewpoints. This enables one to be able to suggest a
proper alternative solution.
 Tolerance while giving moral judgment, which may cause trouble − When the whole
analysis is made considering all the viewpoints of the issue, the final output might be or
might not be pleasing to the persons involved. Hence while declaring the judgment or the
decisions taken, a detailed description of the actions done should be given, while the actions
ought to be done should be presented in a better way, to ensure others that the decisions have
been taken without any partialities towards any party.
 Tolerance while giving moral judgment, which may cause trouble − When the whole
analysis is made considering all the viewpoints of the issue, the final output might be or
might not be pleasing to the persons involved. Hence while declaring the judgment or the
decisions taken, a detailed description of the actions done should be given, while the actions
ought to be done should be presented in a better way, to ensure others that the decisions have
been taken without any partialities towards any party.
Skills for Improving Moral Autonomy
Moral autonomy reflects the concept of individuality. This relates to the idea of building one’s self
with the moral values one has while developing psychologically.
To have moral autonomy in all the aspects, one should have a lot of patience and interest. One
should adhere to the basic principles of humanity and should be strict with the Don’ts he has in mind
and liberal with his Do’s. The kindness towards his fellow beings is also an important concept to be
kept in mind. Inculcation of all these important qualities, enhances the skills of Moral autonomy in a
person.
A Person must have adequate knowledge and understanding about the use of ethical language so as
to defend or support his views with others. He must have better knowledge in understanding the
importance of suggestions and better solutions while resolving moral problems and also about the
importance of tolerance on some critical situations.
Above all, one must understand the importance of maintaining moral honesty and should be liberal
to understand the human behavior under certain circumstances.
Loyalty to corporations, respect for authority, collegiality and other teamwork are a few important
virtues in the field of Engineering. Professionalism in engineering would be threatened at every turn
in a corporation driven with powerful egos. Robert Jackall, a Sociologist criticizes professionalism
saying, “what is right in the corporation is what the guy above you wants from you. That’s what
morality is in the corporation.”
In order to understand how good the ethical factors in a corporate world should be, let us consider
the following points −
 Ethical values in their full complexity are widely acknowledged and appreciated by managers
and employees alike.
 In an ethical corporate climate, the use of ethical language is honestly applied and recognized
as a legitimate part of corporate dialogue.
 Top management sets a moral tone in words, in policies and by personal example.
 The procedures should be followed for conflict resolution.
RESPONSIBILITY OF ENGINEERS
Loyalty
Loyalty is the faithful adherence to an organization and the employer. Loyalty to an employer can be
either of the two types −
 Agency-loyalty − Agency-loyalty is acting to fulfil one’s contractual duties to an employer.
This is entirely a matter of actions, such as doing one’s job and not stealing from one’s
employer, irrespective of the motive behind it.
 Attitude-loyalty − Attitude-loyalty has a lot to do with attitudes, emotions and a sense of
personal identity as it does with actions. It can be understood that people who work
grudgingly and spitefully are not loyal; in spite of the fact they may adequately perform all
their work responsibilities and hence manifest agencyloyalty.
Collegiality
Collegiality is the term that describes a work environment where responsibility and authority are
shared among the colleagues. When Engineering codes of ethics mention collegiality, they generally
cite acts that constitute disloyalty. The disloyalty of professionals towards an organization, reflects
the attitude they have towards the work environment for the salaries they are paid and the trust the
company has for them.
The National Society of Professional Engineers (NSPE) Code, for example, states that “Engineers
shall not attempt to injure, maliciously or falsely, directly or indirectly, the professional reputation,
prospects, practice or employment of other engineers. Engineers who believe others are guilty of
unethical or illegal practice shall present such information to the proper authority for action”.
The main factors that help in maintain harmony among members at a workplace are −
 Respect
 Commitment
 Connectedness
In detail, the colleagues are to be respected for their work and contribution towards the
organizational goals and should be valued for their professional expertise and their dedication
towards the social goods promoted by the profession. Commitment observed in the sense of sharing
a devotion to the moral ideals inherent in one’s profession. The coordination among all the members
at a workplace or the awareness of participating in cooperative projects based on shared
commitments and mutual support, also encourages the quality of the work.
Respect for Authority
In order to meet the organizational goals, the professionals should possess respect for authority. The
levels of authority maintained by the organization provides a means for identifying areas of personal
responsibility and accountability.
Following are the major types of authority −
 Executive Authority − The corporate or institutional right given to a person to exercise
power based on the resources of an organization.
 Expert Authority − This is the possession of special knowledge, skill or competence to
perform a particular task or to give sound advice.
According to the goals of the company, the hierarchical authority is distributed. A service oriented or
engineer-oriented company concentrates on the quality of the products which are decided by the
engineers as they are the subject matter experts. Whereas a company when it is customer-oriented
company, focuses primarily on the satisfaction of the customers. Hence the goal of the company
decides the power between a General Manager and a Technical Manager or an Engineer.
Collective Bargaining
It is the responsibility of an organization to look into the welfare of the section of people working in
it. Their issues need to be discussed. When we discuss issues, there can be issues which need to be
discussed among the employees themselves and resolutions can be found for the same. However,
there can be issues which might require the intervention of the management. In order to deal with
such complex situations, an Employee Union is formed wherein, each employee becomes a member
and a leader is elected to represent the group whenever needed.
At the time of conflicts or arguments, there will arise the need for negotiation between the parties.
Conflicting situations which call for negotiation might occur on areas related to pay scales, working
hours, training, health and safety, overtime, grievance mechanisms, rights in work places or
company affairs, etc. The process of voluntary negotiations between the employers and a group of
employees to resolve the conflicts is called Collective Bargaining.
The parties often refer to the result of the negotiation as a Collective Bargaining Agreement
(CBA) or as a Collective Employment Agreement (CEA).
The underlying idea of collective bargaining is that the employer and employee relations should not
be decided unilaterally or with the intervention of any third party. Both the parties must reconcile
their differences voluntarily through negotiations, yielding some concessions and making sacrifices
in the process. Both should bargain from a position of strength. There should be no attempt to exploit
the weaknesses or vulnerability of one party.
With such an awareness, the necessity of formation of Unions was observed in all the organizations
and the idea was strengthened to form larger labor unions. Both parties have, more or less, realized
the importance of peaceful co-existence for mutual benefit and continued progress.
Types of Collective Bargaining
Let us now discuss the types of collective bargaining. There are four main types of collective
bargaining −
 Distributive Bargaining − In this, one party’s gain is another party’s loss. Example −
Wages
 Integrative bargaining − In this, both the parties may gain or none of the parties may face a
loss. Example − Better training programs
 Attitudinal Structuring − When there is backlog of bitterness between both the parties then
attitudinal structuring is required to make smooth industrial relations.
 Intra-organizational Bargaining − There can be conflicting groups in both management
and unions also. So, there is need to achieve consensus in these groups.
The other important responsibility of an employee or an engineer is to maintain the confidentiality of
the organization or the employer. To understand confidentiality, we need to understand what is
Intellectual Property.
Intellectual Property
This term is often used in the world of business. Intellectual property refers to creations of mind
such as inventions; literary and artistic works, designs; and symbols, names and images used in
commerce.
The ideas and formulations in one’s mind are put in action or may not be done so, but that idea is the
result of one’s intelligence and it cannot be stolen. Such problems are mostly encountered by
scientists, engineers, business people or the upcoming entrepreneurs, and such. Intellectual Property,
i.e., IP is protected by the law; patents, trademarks and copyrights enable people to earn
recognition from what they invent or create.
While being associated with an organization, an engineer is expected to follow a few moral rules and
avoid affecting the intellectual properties of anyone. These when adopted by an organization,
through some agreement, it becomes the responsibility of every employee to maintain the
confidentiality throughout that project.
Confidentiality
When the word confidential is added to any information, it means that it should not be shared with
one and all. It is mostly a trade secret. Maintaining confidentiality and avoiding harmful conflicts of
interest are especially important aspects of teamwork and trustworthiness.
Confidentiality is that practice which helps to keep secret all information deemed desirable to keep
secret. The maintenance of secrecy refers to the unrevealing of any data concerning the company’s
business or technical processes that are not already in public knowledge. Every company has some
knowledge and can identify the individuals and groups that might have access to a particular set of
information. The members of such groups share the responsibility of maintaining confidentiality.
Types of information
The confidential information can be understood as Privileged Information and Proprietary
information. Privileged information means “available only on the basis of special privilege” such as
a privilege accorded an employee working on a special assignment. Proprietary information is the
information that a company owns or is the proprietor of, and hence is a term carefully defined by
property law. It is simply called trade secret.
Changing jobs
The obligation to protect confidential information does not cease when employees change jobs. The
former employees are bound by moral rules and are not supposed to indulge in revealing or selling
such information to the new employers. An employee may change his job for his personal financial
or career-oriented growth. But that should never effect the old company, which he used to work for.
An engineer’s knowledge base generates an intuitive sense of what designs will work and will not
work, and trade secrets form part of this knowledge base. It is usually considered a better deal, if the
employee is not allowed to change the job until the project finishes; this helps in avoiding
unnecessary revelation of information.
Management Policies
To protect the personal interest and rights of engineers and other employees while recognizing the
rights of employers, employment contracts with a few restrictions imposed, helps. Usually, those
restrictions centered on the geographical location of future employers, the length of time after
leaving the present employer before one can engage in certain kinds of work and the type of work it
is permissible to do for future employers.
But such contracts threaten the right of individuals to pursue their careers freely and hence courts
tend not to recognize them as binding. The employers might try different plans such as an agreement
not to work for similar project for few years or to be an outside consultant for the same project until
it finishes so as to make them abide morally. Other tactics like restricting trade secrets to employees
where absolutely essential might result in lessening the knowledge base of engineers involved in
research and development.
One potential solution for employers might be generating a sense of professional responsibility
among the staff that reaches beyond merely obeying the directives of current employers.
Justification
The primary justification is to respect the autonomy (freedom, self-determination) of individuals
and corporations and to recognize their legitimate control over some private information concerning
themselves. The rights and duties of autonomy along with its utilities are to be observed. The trust
and trustworthiness can grow once confidentiality is maintained properly.
Conflicts of Interest
A person may have different types of interests. Such interests can be pursued according to the will,
convenience and the laws prevailing. A person working in an organization might have multiple
interests related to the job he is doing; if he does some side business which means he might be a
competitor or he might work with a competitor, it might pose a problem for the employer. Such an
employee is usually fired from the organization.
Thus, we can refine our definition of conflicts of interest by saying that they typically arise when
the following two conditions are met −
 The professional is in a relationship or role that requires exercising good judgment on behalf
of the interests of an employer or client.
 The professional has some additional or side interest that could threaten good judgement in
serving the interests of the employer or client.
Dilemma
There occurs a usual dilemma between conflicts of interest and conflicting interests. To get a clear
understanding between both, let us consider two examples.
Example 1
Let us consider a girl who needs to choose from among her interests in order to fit in her timetable.
She wants to attend the exam in college, to attend the music class, to go out for a movie, to deliver a
seminar and also go visit her friend. As she is falling short of time, it is her interest to choose what to
do and what not. The term used to mention this can be “Conflicting interests” and this cannot be
morally wrong.
Example 2
If another instance is considered where a man works for a company, being in some crucial position
where he has access to all the confidential information and if he works as an unofficial adviser to his
wife’s company, it would be morally wrong, where a moral conflict definitely arises. This can be
termed as “Conflict in interests”.
Hence, the two concepts are different.
There arise very subtle situations with various conflicts of interests. Let us see the most common
ones −
Gifts, bribes and kickbacks
The following definitions will help us understand this −
 A bribe is a substantial amount of money or goods offered beyond a stated business contract
with the aim of winning an advantage in gaining or keeping the contract and where the
advantage is unfair or otherwise unethical.
 Gifts can be small gratuities offered in the normal conduct of business.
 Prearranged payments made by contractors to companies or their representatives in exchange
for contracts actually granted are called Kickbacks.
At times, if the money or gifts offered are substantial enough to threaten the fairness of competitive
situations, then such gifts turn out to be bribes. They cannot be accepted as simple gratuities. Hence
there is a thumb rule stating such condition as, “If the offer or acceptance of a particular gift could
have embarrassing consequences for your company if made public, then do not accept the gift”.
Interest in other companies
An Employee while working in his company, if supports another company, during his leisure time to
earn more or for some other career aspects, can be understood as committing an immoral act. Such
an act is called Moonlighting which usually creates conflicts of interests. Instances creating such
conflicts can be working for competitors, suppliers or customers.
The want of additional income or the need for personal and professional growth might foster one to
pursue such ideas, which usually creates problems. A special kind of conflict of interest arises,
however, when moonlighting leaves one exhausted and thereby harms the job performance.
Insider information
The insider information might concern one’s own company or another company with which one does
business. Leakage of the information for the interest of some other benefits is like digging one’s own
pit. The interest in other’s companies makes a person morally low and lets him to go beyond moral
boundaries and this might create an impact on the confidentiality for the reception of special
privileges. When a person crosses his moral grounds, even the beneficiaries stop trusting him further.
Employee conflicts of interest occur when employees have interests that if pursued can keep them
from meeting their obligations to serve the interests of the employer or client for whom they work.
CORPORATE SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY:
Corporate Social Responsibility is a management concept whereby companies integrate social and
environmental concerns in their business operations and interactions with their stakeholders. CSR is
generally understood as being the way through which a company achieves a balance of economic,
environmental and social imperatives (“Triple-Bottom-Line- Approach”), while at the same time
addressing the expectations of shareholders and stakeholders. In this sense it is important to draw
a distinction between CSR, which can be a strategic business management concept, and charity,
sponsorships or philanthropy. Even though the latter can also make a valuable contribution to poverty
reduction, will directly enhance the reputation of a company and strengthen its brand, the concept of
CSR clearly goes beyond that.
Promoting the uptake of CSR amongst SMEs requires approaches that fit the respective needs and
capacities of these businesses, and do not adversely affect their economic viability. UNIDO based its
CSR programme on the Triple Bottom Line (TBL) Approach, which has proven to be a successful
tool for SMEs in the developing countries to assist them in meeting social and environmental
standards without compromising their competitiveness. The TBL approach is used as a framework for
measuring and reporting corporate performance against economic, social and environmental
performance. It is an attempt to align private enterprises to the goal of sustainable global development
by providing them with a more comprehensive set of working objectives than just profit alone. The
perspective taken is that for an organization to be sustainable, it must be financially secure, minimize
(or ideally eliminate) its negative environmental impacts and act in conformity with societal
expectations.
Key CSR issues: environmental management, eco-efficiency, responsible sourcing, stakeholder
engagement, labour standards and working conditions, employee and community relations, social
equity, gender balance, human rights, good governance, and anti-corruption measures.
A properly implemented CSR concept can bring along a variety of competitive advantages, such as
enhanced access to capital and markets, increased sales and profits, operational cost savings,
improved productivity and quality, efficient human resource base, improved brand image and
reputation, enhanced customer loyalty, better decision making and risk management processes.

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Consumer Protection Act, 2019

18HS71 - Constitution of India and Professional Ethics

Consumer Protection Act, 2019

Brief History of Consumer Protection Act in India

Dept. of Industrial Engineering and Management

Meaning of Consumer Protection Act, 2019

Aim of the Consumer Protection Act

Definition of the consumer

Key features of the Consumer Protection Act, 2019

1. Establishment of the Central Consumer Protection Authority (CCPA):

Dept. of Industrial Engineering and Management

What is "Deficiency of Service"?

Indian Judiciary on “Deficiency of Services” under Consumer Protection Laws

Dept. of Industrial Engineering and Management

Unfair Trade Practices

Nature of product liability law

Dept. of Industrial Engineering and Management

Privity of contract and product liability

Types of product liability

Dept. of Industrial Engineering and Management

Remedies available to consumers under the Consumer Protection Act, 2019

Remedy against a product manufacturer

Remedy against a product service provider

Remedy against a product seller

Dept. of Industrial Engineering and Management

Cases of claiming remedy

Defences against product liability claims

Defences available to a product manufacturer

Dept. of Industrial Engineering and Management

Online shopping and product liability

Liability of a product retailer or delivery service

Examples when liability can be ascertained

Dept. of Industrial Engineering and Management

Liability related to online food products

False and Misleading Advertisement,

The false misrepresentation can be classified into two broad categories:

Indian laws and regulations on misleading advertisements

Dept. of Industrial Engineering and Management

Dept. of Industrial Engineering and Management

The Cable Television Networks (Regulations) Act, 1995 (CTN Act)

Some Indian laws that apply to advertising include the following:

Dept. of Industrial Engineering and Management

 all models of e-commerce, including marketplace and inventory models of e-

The Key Obligations Applying To Ecommerce Entities And Sellers

Dept. of Industrial Engineering and Management

Explicit And Affirmative Consent Of The Consumers

Dept. of Industrial Engineering and Management

Consumer Discrimination And Disclosure Of Preferential Treatment To Sellers

This requirement is clearly an extension of the aforementioned overarching restrictions,

Grievance Redressal Officer

Dept. of Industrial Engineering and Management

Nodal Person Of Contact

Dept. of Industrial Engineering and Management

False Or Misleading Advertisements

Grievance Redressal Officer

Consumer Complaint Redressal Mechanism

Dept. of Industrial Engineering and Management

Pecuniary Jurisdiction in Consumer Cases

Dept. of Industrial Engineering and Management

Central Consumer Protection Authorities

How to make a complaint?

Consumer Dispute Redressal Commission (CDRC)

Declared this _____________ day of _ month of ______ year.

Declared this _day of _month of _____year.