To safeguard interest of consumers, the Department of Consumer Affairs under the Ministry of Consumer Affairs, Food and Public Distribution has omitted the Rule 5 of the Legal Metrology (Packaged Commodities), Rules 2011 defining the Schedule II prescribing the pack sizes of various types of commodities .
Key highlights:
The provisions of declarations of MRP have been simplified by removing illustration and providing for making the mandatory declaration of MRP in Indian currency inclusive of all taxes.
This has allowed the manufacturer/packer/importer to declare the MRP on the pre-packaged commodities in a simplified manner.
Rules for declaring the commodities sold in pre-packed commodities in numbers have been eased out to reduce the compliance burden for manufacturer /importer/packer.
Under the companies which are selling packaged amendments with a quantity of more than one kilogram are required to print 'unit sale price' per kg along with its maximum retail price (MRP).
This will remove the ambiguity of declaration of quantity sold by number in pre packed commodities.
New amendment will be applicable from April 2022.
According to the rule, rice or wheat flour were required to be packed in a 100-gram package, 200-gram package, 500-gram package, 1 kg package, 1.25 kg package, 1.5 kg package, 1.75 kg package, 2kg package, 5 kg package and in multiples of 5 kg.
Background of legal metrology (Packaged Commodities) Rules 2011:
The Legal Metrology (Packaged Commodities) Rules, 2011, make it mandatory to get the approvals prior to the import.
The Legal Metrology (Packaged Commodities), Rules 2011 are primarily intended to ensure that the consumers are able to make informed choices by being informed of essential declarations on the pre-packed commodities.
About the Legal Metrology Act 2009:
The Department of Consumer Affairs, administers the Legal Metrology Act 2009.
The act provides for application of legal requirements to measurements and measuring instruments.
The objective of Legal Metrology is to ensure public guarantee from the point of view of security and accuracy of the weights and measurements.
MRP:
MRP stands for maximum retail price. Maximum retail price is the highest price labeled on the product which can be charged by the seller of that product.
It is compulsory for all the sellers to mark the MRP. The concept of MRP was introduced in India in 1990 after the amendment of Standards of Weights and Measures Act, 1997.
Before the introduction of the MRP rules in India amendment, the retailer was allowed to either mark the local price on the product or MRP India.
This made the retailer charge more than the expected and real price from the consumers.
After looking into the increased corruption at the price the amendment was introduced to ensure that the consumers are further not cheated.
Additional Information:
Consumer Protection Act, 2019:
The Consumer Protection Act, 2019 has come into effect from July 20, replacing the earlier Consumer Protection Act, 1986.
The central government had set up a CCPA to promote, protect and enforce the rights of consumers.
It regulated matters related to violation of consumer rights, unfair trade practices, and misleading advertisements.
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