e-commerce entities, manufacturers fined Rs 2.25 lakh  for non-disclosure of statutory info

Ziraat Times News Desk

SRINAGAR: Legal Metrology department (LMD), under the supervision of Controller Legal Metrology J&K, Rajinder Singh Tara, has taken stringent action against violations of packaging regulations to safeguard consumer rights.
In a series of actions against the erring manufacturers and sellers, a penalty was imposed on the manufacturers of the pre-packaged items after they were found distributing their items without the mandatory declarations as prescribed under the Legal Metrology Packaged Commodities Rules 2011.

In one such case, a well-known detergent manufacturer was booked by Legal Metrology Officer Baramulla, which was found indulging in gross violation of the law. In yet another violation, a case was registered against an e-commerce entity by Legal Metrology Officer Kulgam, which was found selling its products without displaying the mandatory declarations, as required under rules.

It was observed that such omissions on the e-commerce selling platforms mislead the consumers and violate the provisions of the Legal Metrology Rules. Besides, the absence of this information on pre-packaged goods or e-commerce listings directly affects the consumer’s ability to make informed choices.

The department has during recent times booked numerous e-commerce platforms and proceedings as warranted under rules have been taken against them. All these manufacturers and sellers readily acknowledged such lapse and pleaded before the department for compounding their offence in terms of the Legal Metrology Act 2009 resulting in the recovery of Rs: 2.25 lacs as fine.

It is pertinent to mention that all the e-Commerce sellers are required to display every detail regarding their products on their websites and in case of failure, the department is mandated to take required action against them which includes the fine as well as withdrawal of such unlawful products from such websites.

LMD reiterates its commitment to ensuring fair trade practices and protecting consumer interests across Jammu & Kashmir and is advising every consumer by way of the consumer awareness camps to check all statutory declarations before making purchases, both in physical markets and on digital platforms and any consumer grievances or complaints can be reported to the department’s toll-free helpline at 1800-180-7114.