Govt to expedite consumer court formation
KATHMANDU, SEP 21 -
Following the recent market monitoring drive that unearthed massive wrongdoings in the market—from adulteration of daily essential commodities to drinking water contamination —the government has decided to expedite works on the formation of a consumer court.
Chief Secretary Madhav Ghimire at a meeting of the Central Monitoring Committee on Tuesday said the government would speed up the consumer court formation.
The meeting has directed the government authorities, including the Department of Commerce, District Administration Offices and Department of Food Technology and Quality Control, to first arrest those involved in selling date-expired products and adulterated food and initiate investigation.
The government raids have found a widespread use of rotten raw materials to produce sweet items and fast foods along with date-expired food products and medicines being sold in the market. Consumers are suffering from food adulteration, price hikes, cartels and transport syndicate, but the perpetrators are not being punished because of lengthy legal procedures.
At the meeting, Lila Mani Paudel, secretary at the Prime Ministers’ Office, directed the government authorities concerned first to arrest violators of the Black Marketing Act, Food Act and Consumer Protection Act, and then initiate other legal procedures. Poudel, who was recently transferred from the Ministry of Home Affairs, has also warned of action against government agencies, if found protecting wrongdoers.
The committee meeting has also decided to add workforce in the Nepal Bureau of Standards and Metrology for effective monitoring of taxies that are accused of charging exorbitant fares.
The Ministry of Commerce and Supplies has forwarded a proposal to the Ministry of Law and Justice to amend the Consumer Protection Act to give it more teeth for effective market monitoring. Following the amendment to the law, the ministry is targeting to form the consumer court, where cases related to consumers’ rights will be deal in a fast an efficient way.
“We have long been demanding the government to amend the act and form consumer act,” said Anil Thakur, director general of the Department of Commerce. He added that the amendment to the act would give more power to inspection officers to take immediate action against wrongdoers based on semi-judicial right.
The law ministry on Friday will discuss the formation of the consumer court with concerned stakeholders. However, the Ministry of Finance has remained numb about the setting up of a Consumer Protection Fund based on proposed amendment to the act. “The Finance Ministry should clearly come up with a decision if it is not possible to establish the fund,” said a source at MoCS, adding that the fund issue has been delaying the amendment of the act.
In a bid to institutionalise the recent market monitoring drive, the government is also working to set up a permanent market monitoring mechanism. The mechanism will have 75 staffers to carry out year-round market monitoring. The MoCS recently forwarded a proposal to the Ministry of General Administration in this regard. The mechanism will work under the Department of Commerce.
Although there are market monitoring committees in all districts under respective District Administration Offices, CDOs are always busy with other daily affairs. Therefore, market inspection has been receiving less priority. Likewise, the government last year had appointed market protection officers in 30 districts to control artificial price hike, hoarding, carteling and transport syndicate, but there has not been any significant impact on the market.
Source: Kantipur
Following the recent market monitoring drive that unearthed massive wrongdoings in the market—from adulteration of daily essential commodities to drinking water contamination —the government has decided to expedite works on the formation of a consumer court.
Chief Secretary Madhav Ghimire at a meeting of the Central Monitoring Committee on Tuesday said the government would speed up the consumer court formation.
The meeting has directed the government authorities, including the Department of Commerce, District Administration Offices and Department of Food Technology and Quality Control, to first arrest those involved in selling date-expired products and adulterated food and initiate investigation.
The government raids have found a widespread use of rotten raw materials to produce sweet items and fast foods along with date-expired food products and medicines being sold in the market. Consumers are suffering from food adulteration, price hikes, cartels and transport syndicate, but the perpetrators are not being punished because of lengthy legal procedures.
At the meeting, Lila Mani Paudel, secretary at the Prime Ministers’ Office, directed the government authorities concerned first to arrest violators of the Black Marketing Act, Food Act and Consumer Protection Act, and then initiate other legal procedures. Poudel, who was recently transferred from the Ministry of Home Affairs, has also warned of action against government agencies, if found protecting wrongdoers.
The committee meeting has also decided to add workforce in the Nepal Bureau of Standards and Metrology for effective monitoring of taxies that are accused of charging exorbitant fares.
The Ministry of Commerce and Supplies has forwarded a proposal to the Ministry of Law and Justice to amend the Consumer Protection Act to give it more teeth for effective market monitoring. Following the amendment to the law, the ministry is targeting to form the consumer court, where cases related to consumers’ rights will be deal in a fast an efficient way.
“We have long been demanding the government to amend the act and form consumer act,” said Anil Thakur, director general of the Department of Commerce. He added that the amendment to the act would give more power to inspection officers to take immediate action against wrongdoers based on semi-judicial right.
The law ministry on Friday will discuss the formation of the consumer court with concerned stakeholders. However, the Ministry of Finance has remained numb about the setting up of a Consumer Protection Fund based on proposed amendment to the act. “The Finance Ministry should clearly come up with a decision if it is not possible to establish the fund,” said a source at MoCS, adding that the fund issue has been delaying the amendment of the act.
In a bid to institutionalise the recent market monitoring drive, the government is also working to set up a permanent market monitoring mechanism. The mechanism will have 75 staffers to carry out year-round market monitoring. The MoCS recently forwarded a proposal to the Ministry of General Administration in this regard. The mechanism will work under the Department of Commerce.
Although there are market monitoring committees in all districts under respective District Administration Offices, CDOs are always busy with other daily affairs. Therefore, market inspection has been receiving less priority. Likewise, the government last year had appointed market protection officers in 30 districts to control artificial price hike, hoarding, carteling and transport syndicate, but there has not been any significant impact on the market.
Source: Kantipur
