Etela asks officials to educate consumers

Karimnagar: Finance Minister Etela Rajender said on Sunday that cases of cheating can be prevented if the consumers were aware of various Acts.

Rajender was the chief guest at the district consumers’ conference organised by Karimnagar consumers council at Film Bhavan here. He suggested that training and awareness programmes should be conducted for consumers to make them aware of different Acts.

Measures should be taken to prevent the poor from getting cheated by traders and middlemen. Stating that Acts were made for the welfare of people, he opined that certain changes need to be made in some Acts to protect the interests of the poor. The Minister said the rulers only have a limited role to play in a democracy. He said the IAS officers were fully aware of the Acts and these Acts should not be used only for the benefit of the affluent sections. They need to be used for the welfare of the poor, Rajender said.

He said measures should be taken to prevent sale of adulterated provisions and other items. Officials should be vigilant to prevent malpractices. Joint Collector Sarfaraz Ahmed suggested that rights of consumers should be included as topics in textbooks of school students to generate awareness among people. People should be educated on what measures they need to take if consumers get cheated.

National Consumer Council President Krishna Reddy pointed out that every citizen is a consumer. He suggested that a consumer mediation centre should be set up in every mandal and the cases should be settled locally.

ZP Chairperson Tula Uma, State Consumer Council member Lakshmi Narasimha Rao, Bureau of Indian Standards DD Naveen Kumar, Prof. Balakishan, District Supply officer Chandraprakash and District Consumer Council member Srinivas were among those who attended the meeting.