Ref. : ER/Press/’03/pubmeet.40/DG

The Union Minister for Consumer Affairs and Public Distribution, Mr. Sharad Yadav, has promised to standardise the rules and regulations for the building industry and hinted at steps against unscrupulous builders to ensure fair play to consumers. His Ministry would take up the issue soon, he added.

The ultimate dream of a citizen, the Minister added, is to own a shelter. To realise this dream, he puts in his life’s savings and even incurs debt. But strangely, there are no safeguards against the consumer losing money or not getting possession or paying exorbitant rates. The unscrupulous among the builders take advantage of the situation and arbitrarily decide on the prices, the mode of payment and other terms and conditions. Hence the Minister promised to look into the existing rules and regulations and see what could be done to ensure standards.

Mr. Yadav was delivering the Chief Guest’s Address at a public meeting on ‘Consumer Protection in the New Millennium - Present Dimensions and Future Projections’ in Ahmedabad on Monday (25/08/2003), the concluding day of the week-long Silver Jubilee of Consumer Education and Research Centre (CERC), Ahmedabad.

The Governor of Gujarat, Mr. Kailashpati Mishra, presided over the meeting and delivered the Presidential Address. The other distinguished speakers included Mr. Justice M. S. Parikh, President, Gujarat State Consumer Disputes Redressal Commission; Mr. P. P. Vora, Chairman and Managing Director, Industrial Development Bank of India (IDBI), Mumbai; Mr. P. Jagjit Singh, Executive Director - Marketing, LIC, Mumbai; Mr. Arvind Narottam Lalbhai, Chairman, Arvind Mills, Ahmedabad; and Mr. Glenn Whaley, Director - Energy, Environment and Enterprise (EEE), US Agency for International Development (USAID), New Delhi.

Mr. Yadav appreciated the dedicated and sincere service of CERC in general and Prof Manubhai Shah, Chairman Emeritus, in particular to the cause of consumer protection and empowerment for the past 25 years which, he added, had earned the organisation its present pride of place. He also urged it to further broadbase its activities cutting across the intelligentsia and the common man, and lead a mass movement for consumer protection. He exhorted consumers too to realise their rights and exercise them zealously.

The Governor called upon consumer organisations to spread the awareness on a wider scale. The objectives of the movement could be attained only through educating the masses about their rights and how they can clinch redressal of their consumer grievances.

The Governor felicitated Prof Manubhai Shah for his indomitable courage of conviction and his “selfless and dedicated service to the Consumer Movement”.

Earlier, Prof Shah acknowledged the all-out cooperation to CERC and him by the various sections of society, the funding agencies, the Government bodies, the private and public sector industries, and many others without whose support CERC could not have occupied its present position. He described them as “partners in our growth” of CERC and the consumer movement.

The other speakers recalled their association with CERC and Prof Shah and reiterated their faith in the sincerity and integrity of the organisation.

Mr. Abhay Mangaldas, entrepreneur, gave away the prizes to winners of the Children’s Painting Competition organised by CERC earlier during the week-long Silver Jubilee.

Date : 27/08/2003
Place : Ahmedabad

Pritee Shah
Editor
INSIGHT - The Consumer Magazine