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Consumer rights and organisations
Apparently there are 8 basic rights a consumer enjoys which include:
- Right to Safety
- Right to Information
- Right to Choice
- Right to be Heard
- The Right to Redress
- The right to consumer education
- The Right to Basic Needs and
- The right to a healthy and sustained environment.
The last of these would seem most connected to ecosensitive consumerism.
| Right to Safe Environment |
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For urban consumers, environment means parks, gardens, and deteriorating air and water quality. Most urban areas are bereft of any wildlife and people are unaware of the biodiversity around them. On the other hand, rural consumers rely on their environment for fulfilment of their basic needs. |
| The need for environmental conservation is seen as a necessary defence against deteriorating quality of life world-wide. We are all victims of contaminated food and water supply, pesticide-ridden food, adulterated milk and choking exhaust fumes emitting from vehicles. According to a World Bank report, India is being pushed back due to its high environmental costs. We lose around Rs 24,500 crores every year in terms of air and water pollution alone. If you live in a city, you must have experienced air and water pollution at some point of time. Children often fall ill due to polluted environments, it leads to increased health costs and discomfort for consumers. Valuable resources and man-days are lost due to polluted environment and living conditions. Consumers need to understand that only a safe environment can ensure the fulfilment of their consumer rights. |
If we look closely at our immediate surroundings and our consumption patterns, we would find that we, ourselves, are responsible for causing environmental pollution to a certain extent. For instance, our monthly purchases include various kinds of washing detergents, toilet cleaning acids and chemicals like Harpic or Sanifresh, and a lot of non-biodegradable packaging for pre-packed food products. This leads to environmental problems like water and soil pollution, and waste disposal problems. It also shows that our consumption patterns are closely linked with the state of the environment and that environmental damage is mostly a result of irresponsible consumer behaviour. |
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| Consumers International (a nodal agency of consumer organisations from all over the world) has made certain guidelines for ensuring consumers' right to safe environment. Consumers should be protected from environmental pollution by: 1. Promoting the use of products which are environmentally sustainable. 2. Encouraging recycling 3. Requiring environmentally dangerous products to carry appropriate warnings and instructions for safe use and disposal. Promote the use of non-toxic products by: 1. Raising consumer awareness of alternatives to toxic products 2. Establishing procedures to ensure that products banned overseas do not enter national markets. 3. Ensure that the social impacts of pollution are minimised. 4. Promote ethical, socially and environmentally responsible practices by producers and suppliers of goods and services. |
Read more about consumer rights at
Consumer Voice, an online magazine for consumer awareness
Mumbai Grahak Panchayat
Consumer Education and Research Center
Department of Consumer Affairs, Ministry of Consumer Affairs, Food and Public Distribution
Consumer Online Foundation