Consumer Activism:A Platform for our Rights and Duties

                        

               Consumer Activism: a platform for our rights and duties.

Activism is the doctrine or practice of vigorous action or involvement as a means of achieving political or social goals. There are many types of activism such as the judicial activism, student activism, media activism, internet activism etc, but the most potent, wide-reaching and the most sought after activism is Consumer activism. This is because it is not limited to any specific group like the judiciary or students or the Media, but extends to connect with everyone in the society. It presupposes awareness of unfair practices that affect the consumers and it anticipates redressal of complaints against unsatisfactory products, unfair price and above all it is a potent tool to assert consumer’s rights. Consumer activism helps the consumers to make informed buying decisions- to make buying pro-active. In short, it empowers the Consumer as King, in the sense that he is the final decider and arbiter in any unfair transaction between the seller and the buyer. But the most important element that underlies consumer activism is that it involves some degree of personal sacrifice, a willingness to deny oneself a necessary product or thing in order to demand better quality and fairer price for it. It is this element that is missing in Consumer activism in India. Let me illustrate this from what we experience daily as we shop for fruits and vegetables.

This is the season for mangoes, leechis, melons, tomatoes etc- fruits and vegetables that have a fair amount of water to quench our summer thirst. Invariably every year these are either in short supply or of poor quality ( the better quality fruits are exported to fetch very high price and that too in foreign currency ) or priced beyond the affordability of  consumers who do not belong to that microscopically small percent of the affluent class. The large majority of consumers from the middle and lower middle class have either to buy inferior fruits and vegetables at a high price or pay phenomenal price to buy quality products.  It is easy to blame the government for price rise specially relating to the food index, but the real culprit is we, the consumers who surrender to the greed of the sellers. If consumers are ready to forego tomatoes and onions, mangoes and bananas, these perishable items under the scorching sun will soon rot and move out of the store shelves into the garbage dins. Active Consumer movement should unite us all  as consumers to boycott perishable food items that meet neither our purse nor our palate.   Consumer activism can succeed if there is a voluntary effort to give up these vegetables and fruits until the prices are brought down as per the Law of demand and supply.  The goal should be to pressurize the sellers to make available fruits and vegetables of better quality at affordable price.  It is this united movement that is missing in our society. It is a sad reflection of our mindset that prioritizes selfishness to obtain for oneself goods and products without a thought for the millions who have to do without them. The development of social awareness with regard to consumer activism is closely linked to the development of moral and spiritual awareness. Embedded in this movement are morality, selflessness, sacrifice and united effort to make the traders and sellers recognize the power of Consumer activism.

The operation of consumer activism is needed in cases of adulteration- adulteration of edible oils, water, milk, foodstuff like rice, flour and pulses, medicines, besides fuel that corrode the car engine and cause  kitchen fire. There is certainly legal recourse to all these adulterated products and unfair practices, but in our country the judicial wheel moves slowly and never reaches its destination. Unlike the USA where consumer movements have developed as a potent form of resistance against unethical marketing and industrial practices, in India, the movement often gets stymied for lack of united effort. Traders know that they can sell goods of whatever quality as there is no strong protest movement that unites all consumers. Organizations like consumer forum, Shoutout etc have boldly emerged to take the traders bull by their horns. But these organizations need grassroots level support through boycott of goods that are quality-wise low and price-wise high.

Consumer is King-  because of his commitment to the cause of his fellow beings, because of his awareness of the unethical practices among the traders and shopkeepers, because of his courage to renounce all those products until their quality and fair price are ensured.  This is yet another fight against corruption- corruption that is insidious and working in a hidden injurious way. Let the Consumers of India unite to overcome all injustices, immoral practices and deceit in their transaction with traders and shopkeepers.

Consumer activism is not limited to ethical shopping, ethical purchase behavior, ethical consumption only, but it also includes action against ethical wastage so that less privileged consumers can have access to them. In many families, medicines that include vitamins and anti-biotics and tonics lie unused. Consumer organizations should keep cardboard boxes in prominent places in different neighbourhoods where consumers can deposit the unused medicines. If these medicines are within expiry date, these activist organizations can deposit them in hospital and charity clinics. We travel on roads, walk on streets and move around markets. Thus we are consumers of the state’s largesse to us. While it is our right to protest if roads are bad, streets are filthy and markets are disgustingly dirty, we also have our share in maintaining them. Consumer activism extends beyond rights to acceptance of responsibility. As consumers, we should not make our roads garbage dins, nor waste power and water so that others can share the available limited necessities with the rest of us.

Consumer Activism starts with consumers’ duty before it becomes consumer’s rights.