Now Every Product Sold Online Will Have MRP And Other Details!
If the people know what exactly they are buying, this will lead to more traditional shoppers using e-commerce, giving a boost to digital ecosystem.
2018 is all set to become one of the landmark years for digital ecosystem. After removing any sort of fees on debit card transactions, thereby pushing for cashless transactions, Govt. has now made a very important move, which will safeguard the interests of online shoppers, and unleash a new, exciting regime of e-commerce in India.
Starting January 1st, 2018, every e-commerce portal has been mandated to showcase not only the MRP of every product but also their expiry date and customer care number, along with all other relevant information.
This means that online shoppers would be now more empowered with knowledge about the products they are buying; this will lead to more traditional shoppers using e-commerce, which will give a boost to the overall digital ecosystem.
E-commerce Portal Now Mandated To Showcase MRP!
Legal Metrology (packaged commodities) Rules set in June 2017 come into effect starting January 1st, 2018, based on which, every e-commerce portal is mandated to give crucial information to the customers – which includes MRP, expiry date and customer care number.
In case e-commerce portals fail to provide this information, then penalty up to Rs 1 lakh and/or jail term for 1 year has been provisioned.
An official said,
“Amendment made in the Legal Metrology (Packaged Commodities) Rules, 2011 to safeguard the interest of consumers and ease of doing business will come into force with effect from January 1, 2018,”
The Ministry of Consumer Affairs had already made this rule last year in the month of June, when their notification under Legal Metrology (Packaged Commodities) Amendment Rules, 2017 stated:
“An eCommerce entity shall ensure that the mandatory declarations as specified, except the month and year in which the commodity is manufactured or packed, shall be displayed on the digital and electronic network used for eCommerce transactions,”
Hence, e-commerce portals were provided 6-month time for implementing this rule, which has now become effective.
What Will Change Now?
Online shopping is expected to undergo massive change now, as the Legal Metrology (packaged commodities) Rules comes into effect for e-commerce companies.
From now on, following information has to be included in every product sold online:
- MRP (Maximum Retail Price)
- Manufacturing Date
- Expiry Date
- Customer Care Number
- Net Quantity
- Country of Origin
- Large sized letters for displaying this information
Barcode/QR code on every product is a voluntary exercise, not made mandatory as of now.
In case violations are found, then Rs 25,000/- penalty has been designated for the 1stoffence; Rs 50,000/- for 2nd occurrence, and Rs 1 lakh and/or jail term for 1 year beyond that.
Do you think that such rules can help Indian e-commerce industry?
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