Government wakes up to uphold consumer rights

In a bid to better protect consumers rights, the government has decided to make necessary amendments to the Consumer Protection Act 1998 and approve the Market Monitoring Regulation (MMR) through cabinet within this week.

The decisions were taken during a meeting held at the Prime Minister’s Office on Sunday. “The meeting has decided to complete these tasks within March 15,” one of the participants of the meeting told Republica.

The meeting, chaired by Chief Secretary Madhav Prasad Ghimire, was attended Home Secretary Sushil JB Rana, Commerce Secretary Lal Mani Joshi and Joyti Baniya, president of Consumers Rights Protection Forum (CRPF), among others.

“The meeting has also decided to monitor the market effectively,” Baniya said after the meeting, adding, “The decisions made on Sunday are in favor of consumers. We are looking forward to seeing the effective implementation of the decisions.”

According to Baniya, the endorsement of the act will also pave the way for establishment of Consumers Protection Trust (CPT) and Consumer Court (CC). The establishment of these bodies is expected to uphold consumers rights

The meeting also decided to enhance human resources capacity and other physical infrastructures, including vehicles, at the Department of Commerce, Nepal Bureau of Standards and Metrology, and the Department of Food Technology and Quality Control.

It also decided to give more power to market monitoring officers in districts so that they can take prompt actions against unscrupulous traders.

As per existing laws, market monitoring officers can only seal the shops found involved in black-marketing. They can take action against unscrupulous traders on the spot once the act is amended.

Consumers have hailed the government initiative to uphold consumers rights make market monitoring more effective.

“The government has finally taken the initiative to establish consumer court. It will uphold consumers rights and punish traders fleecing consumers in market,” Baniya added.

Sugam gets govt nod to resume op

The Ministry of Industry (MoI) has allowed Sugam Gas -- a notorious gas company that circulated liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) in tampered cylinders -- to resume operations even as it is yet to be tried under Consumer´s Rights Protection Act on charges of exposing consumers´ lives to grave risk.

Officials of Department of Industry (DoI) that issued a letter to this connection to the LPG bottler on Monday said they decided to let the company resume LPG bottling and sales as it served the suspension period and paid fine slapped by the MoI.

MoI had slapped a fine of Rs 500,000 on Sugam Gas and suspended its operations for six months as punishment.

“The company has already paid the fine slapped by the ministry. The suspension period also ended last week,” said Dhurba Lal Rajbansi, director general of the DoI.
Shiva Prasad Ghimire, proprietor of Sugam Gas, also told Republica that he received a letter on resuming operations on Tuesday and that his company would resume LPG bottling immediately.

“I have already filed an application at the Nepal Oil Corporation (NOC), requesting it to supply gas to my company,” he stated.

However, both Ghimire and Rajbanshi refused to talk about the case filed against the company by the Office of Cottage and Small Industry (OoCSI) -- the local market inspector -- in Sunsari.

The office had filed the case after its inspection found the company of illegally amassing cylinders of other bottlers and refitting Sugam´s foot rings and neck rings on them.

As such tampering works erodes pressure bearing capacity of cylinders, making them vulnerable to leakages and explosion, OoCSI and consumers rights protection bodies had assessed that the company had put consumers´ lives at risk by circulating tampered cylinders in the market.

Meanwhile, consumers´ rights activists have flayed the decision. “This is a wrong decision; we urge the government to revoke it,” said Ram Chandra Simkhada, secretary of the Consumers Right Protection Forum (CRPF). He even accused the ministry officials of working hand in glove with the company.