Latest news with #NidhiKhare
Mint
15-07-2025
- Business
- Mint
Bar code: Will MRP rules curb inflated label prices?
The Centre is looking to make pricing of retail goods more transparent and consumer-friendly through a potential overhaul of the maximum retail price (MRP) system, five people aware of the matter said. The Union consumer affairs department has sounded out industry associations, consumer bodies and tax officials about the plan on 16 May, the people cited above said on the condition of anonymity. While the intention is to prevent manufacturers marking up retail prices steeply, some believe the proposal may erode pricing freedom. Retail outlets are currently free to charge any amount up to the maximum printed on the label, and manufacturers do not need to justify how the MRP is arrived at. According to one of the five people mentioned above, the consumer affairs department is looking into whether there should be guidelines on linking MRP to the cost of making and marketing items including essential commodities, packaged goods, and daily use consumer products. To be sure, the proposal is still in its early stage, and the date for the follow-up meeting is yet to be decided. Price-setting Under the Legal Metrology Act, 2009, the department of consumer affairs has the mandate to regulate weights, measures, and labels on packaged goods to ensure accuracy, transparency, and consumer protection. However, the Act does not empower the department to prescribe a pricing formula. Responding to a question about setting MRP under the new regime, a second person said, 'The standard cost will be decided in consultation with all stakeholders. Industry and consumer groups have been asked to give their suggestions to fix the MRP in a way that is not deceptive. The proposal is meant for most of the consumer goods." A ministry communication titled 'Hybrid meeting to discuss the declaration of exaggerated MRP on packaged commodities" said consumer affairs secretary Nidhi Khare would chair the meeting on 16 May. The meeting discussed irrational pricing, and industry executives and consumer groups were urged to come up with suggestions to make the pricing mechanism more consumer-friendly and "aligned with the current taxation system," said the third person. 'Such anomalies, including that of differential pricing, are expected to be addressed through amendments or stricter enforcement under the Legal Metrology Act, 2009, which empowers the ministry of consumer affairs to act against unfair pricing and deceptive practices," the third person added. MRP meeting Representatives of industry organizations such as FICCI, Assocham, Confederation of Indian Industry, PHD Chamber of Commerce and Industry, and the Retailers Association of India, as well as officials from the Goods and Services Tax Council and legal metrology controllers from all states and union territories attended the meeting, said the third person, who attended the meeting. Queries emailed to all of the above remained unanswered. The meeting also discussed so-called differential pricing, when the same product carries different MRPs depending on the location or sales channel. Most developed countries don't have a concept of MRP, and let market forces set prices. While some nations, like India, mandate MRP declaration, the actual price is determined by the manufacturer, with exceptions for essential goods where governments might regulate pricing. 'Not price control' 'The idea behind the proposal is to check unfair trade practices," the second person said. "For instance, if a product has an MRP of ₹5,000 but is sold at ₹2,500 after a 50% discount, the question arises—why was such a high price printed on the tag in the first place? If the retailer is earning a profit by selling it at ₹2,500, the original MRP appears inflated. Does that mean the 50% discount was merely a tactic to attract consumers? We are exploring all such cases in consultation with the industry, especially since the retailer is legally allowed to sell the product at its declared MRP." According to a fourth person, the objective is not to control prices as such, but to ensure that pricing is based on reasonable cost-plus margins. Cost-plus pricing is when the sale price is determined by adding a fixed percentage (markup) to its total cost of production and distribution. "A formula is likely to be worked out to keep MRPs within a fair range that ensures both consumer affordability and manufacturer profitability," the person added. Market efficiency Industry representatives did not see any need for changing the current system. 'It is widely acknowledged that market-driven pricing serves consumers better and supports economic and market efficiency. We have long embraced a free-market approach and the government has judiciously limited price regulation to certain essential commodities like pharmaceuticals. Experience shows that a controlled economy does not serve the interests of the consumer," said Piruz Khambatta, chairman of Rasna Group, who earlier headed a CII committee on food processing. Another industry executive said on the condition of anonymity that the term MRP indicates the maximum price at which a product can be sold and it enables dealers in certain markets to give customers a discount. The person said that linking retail price to costs will prompt some businesses to discontinue certain products, which will affect their availability to the consumer, defeating the very purpose of price regulation. This trend was seen in the pharmaceutical industry wherein a cost-plus pricing mechanism existed in the past. Guardrails in place Some believe there are already mechanisms available to check any malpractice. 'There's a need to be very clear about what the government is trying to address here, and what the actual market failure is. If input costs are low but consumer prices remain high, it suggests that certain intermediaries may be making super-normal profits. There are already mechanisms in place to deal with this such as the Competition Commission of India, or GST enforcement, to check collusion or lack of competition," said Amol Kulkarni, director of research at CUTS International, a non-governmental organisation. 'Instead of regulating MRP or delving into manufacturing-level pricing, which may have unintended consequences; we should strengthen these existing tools. Such interventions could create implementation challenges and confusion among consumers, especially in a price-sensitive country like India. It might also reduce pricing flexibility for companies, affect market access, and limit product choices," Kulkarni added. Tax links Also, any significant change to the MRP mechanism will require coordination with the ministry of finance, particularly to realign the Goods and Services Tax (GST) structure. At present, GST is levied on the transaction value, which may not always be the MRP. 'Since the introduction of GST in 2017, we can't say that MRPs are necessarily high or arbitrary or vary for different places—because there's no legal binding on manufacturers to explain or justify pricing, unless the Central Consumer Protection Authority (CCPA) intervenes," said Ashim Sanyal, CEO of Consumer Voice, a consumer rights organization. 'In the pre-GST era, taxes were levied on the MRP itself—both central and local. This made companies cautious about increasing MRPs, as higher prices directly meant higher tax outgo. It acted as a natural deterrent to inflating prices. With the current system, where GST is applied at the transaction level, manufacturers have greater pricing freedom. In effect, consumers today are at the mercy of companies putting any amount as MRP—which remains legal under existing norms," Sanyal said. 'Linking GST to MRP, rather than transactional value, may appear consumer-friendly on the surface, but it's fraught with complications. It risks distorting pricing freedom and adding unnecessary compliance burdens," said Utkarsh Sinha, managing director of Bexley Advisors, a boutique investment banking firm. Gireesh Chandra Prasad contributed to the story.
Indian Express
03-07-2025
- Business
- Indian Express
Amid import pressure: Govt to promote pulses cultivation in 7 states via seed distribution drives
The Department of Consumer Affairs, which comes under the Ministry of Consumer Affairs, Food and Public Distribution and is responsible for monitoring prices of essential commodities, plans to promote cultivation of two pulses — arhar (tur) and urad — through seed distribution campaigns across a dozen districts in seven states, a top official said Thursday. Consumer Affairs Secretary Nidhi Khare said that the promotion of arhar and urad cultivation through seed distribution campaigns would be carried out in the selected districts of Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Bihar, Jharkhand, Karnataka, Manipur and Tripura. For this, National Cooperative Consumer's Federation of India Limited (NCCF), which comes under the ministry, has begun preparations, she said. She said the pilot campaign in two districts of Jharkhand last year was encouraging and it is being extended to other states. In the ongoing kharif season (2025), the arhar and urad cultivation will be promoted in Palamu, Latehar and Garhwa in Jharkhand; Mirzapur and Lalitpur in Uttar Pradesh; Gaya and Jehabad in Bihar; and Vijaypura in Karnataka. These districts were identified on two criteria — they are rainfed and they have 'Aspirational Blocks' identified by the NITI Aayog. Over `1 crore will be spent on distribution of the seeds in these districts and the government will ensure 100 per cent procurement based on the Minimum Support Price (MSP) if the market prices go down, she said. For the kharif marketing season 2025-26, the MSPs of arhar and urad have been fixed at `8,000 and `7,800 per quintal, respectively. India imports about a dozen pulses from different countries. In 2023-24, India's pulses imports rose to a record high of 47.38 lakh tonnes, almost double of 24.96 lakh tonnes in 2022-23. The government has hiked the MSP for pulses in recent years.
Indian Express
03-07-2025
- Business
- Indian Express
Amid import pressure: Govt to promote arhar, urad cultivation in 7 states via seed distribution campaigns
The Department of Consumer Affairs, which comes under the Ministry of Consumer Affairs, Food and Public Distribution and is responsible for monitoring prices of essential commodities, plans to promote cultivation of two pulses – arhar (tur) and urad– through seed distribution campaigns across a dozen districts in seven states, a top official said Thursday. Consumer Affairs Secretary Nidhi Khare said that the promotion of arhar and urad cultivation through seed distribution campaigns would be carried out in the selected districts of Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Bihar, Jharkhand, Karnataka, Manipur and Tripura. For this, National Cooperative Consumer's Federation of India Limited (NCCF), which comes under the ministry, has already begun preparations, she said. Khare said that the campaign was launched as a pilot in two districts of Jharkhand last year and after encouraging results it is being extended to other states. In the ongoing kharif season (2025), the arhar and urad cultivation will be promoted in Palamu, Latehar and Garhwa in Jharkhand; Mirzapur and Lalitpur in Uttar Pradesh; Gaya and Jehabad in Bihar; and Vijaypura in Karnataka. These districts have been identified on two criteria – first they are rainfed, and the second they have 'Aspirational Blocks' identified by the NITI Aayog. Over Rs one crore will be spent on distribution of pulses seeds in these districts and the government will ensure 100 per cent procurement based on the Minimum Support Price (MSP) in these districts if the market prices go down, she said. A report prepared by the NCCF on pilot conducted in two districts of Jharkhand shows that the seed distribution increased productivity. 'This initiative has significantly increased the income levels of the farmers by increasing the productivity by almost 40-50%. Also the farmers have observed the benefit of using the high-yielding variety of seeds. It highlights the successful efforts in boosting pulses production in the region and the positive impact on farmer profitability,' noted the report submitted to the department. India is dependent on imports to meet its pulses demand. It imports about a dozen pulses from different countries. In 2023-24, India's pulses imports rose to a record high of 47.38 lakh tonnes, almost double of 24.96 lakh tonnes in 2022-23. The government has hiked the MSP for pulses in recent years. For the kharif marketing season 2025-26, the MSPs of arhar and urad have been fixed at `8,000 per quintal and `7,800 per quintal, respectively.
India Today
19-06-2025
- Business
- India Today
One Nation, One Time: India takes a big step towards time uniformity
India has taken a significant step toward streamlining and improving time management. The Department of Consumer Affairs, Government of India, held a Roundtable Conference in New Delhi to promote the idea of "One Nation, One Time" as a formal policy. This initiative aims to ensure that Indian Standard Time (IST) becomes the only official time used for all commercial and legal activities throughout the Union Minister of Parliamentary Affairs, Coal, and Mines, Pralhad Joshi, explained the government's intention to formally advance the time reference by proposing new legal guidelines - Legal Metrology (Indian Standard Time) Rules 2025 - that would limit time references for any legal or commercial purposes. Doing so would prohibit time references to anything other than what the government and the public want. One Nation, One Time: India takes a big step towards time uniformity The government is establishing five Regional Reference Standard Laboratories (RRSLs) in Ahmedabad, Bengaluru, Bhubaneswar, Faridabad, and Guwahati to improve the accuracy and traceability of Indian Standard Time (IST). Each RRSL will include atomic clocks and utilize secure delivery technologies such as Network Time Protocol (NTP) and Precision Time Protocol (PTP), ensuring IST accuracy at the millisecond to microsecond level. This initiative aims to enhance coordination among various sectors, including banking, stock exchanges, electricity supply, telecommunications, and transport, all of which rely on consistent By improving time distribution, India will also reduce its dependence on Global Positioning System (GPS) technology, which is susceptible to interference. The government acknowledges that precise timekeeping is essential for effective governance. Nidhi Khare, the Secretary of the Department of Consumer Affairs, emphasised the need for a reliable mechanism to provide accurate time information to the public and various project involved over 100 experts and representatives from organizations such as ISRO, CSIR-NPL, NSE, and major telecom companies. Since 2018, more than 60 meetings have taken place, with Bharat Khera, Additional Secretary, highlighting the goal of enhancing government operations through improved accuracy and ordinary citizens, this initiative offers direct benefits, including:- More secure online payments-Accurate billing for electricity, water, and other services-Better timing and coordination in transport and communications-Lower risk of cybercrimeIncreased trust, fairness, and transparency in daily services
India Gazette
19-06-2025
- Business
- India Gazette
One Nation, One Time: India's march towards time sovereignty, says Union Minister Pralhad Joshi
New Delhi [India], June 19 (ANI): The Department of Consumer Affairs, Government of India, organised a landmark Round Table Conference on Time Dissemination at Vigyan Bhawan, New Delhi, today, under the visionary theme 'One Nation, One Time.' According to a press release, the Union Minister for Consumer Affairs, Food & Public Distribution and New & Renewable Energy, Pralhad Joshi, emphasised the strategic significance of the Time Dissemination Project being implemented by the Department of Consumer Affairs in collaboration with CSIR-NPL and ISRO. He highlighted that the upcoming Legal Metrology (Indian Standard Time) Rules, 2025, will mandate synchronisation of all legal, commercial and administrative activities with Indian Standard Time (IST), prohibiting the use of alternative time references unless explicitly authorised. The Minister underscored that precise and uniform dissemination of IST across sectors such as financial markets, power grids, telecommunications, transportation, and others is essential to ensuring fairness, accuracy and national security. The initiative aims to deliver IST with millisecond to microsecond accuracy through five Regional Reference Standard Laboratories (RRSLs) equipped with atomic clocks and secure synchronization protocols like NTP and PTP, ushering in a new era of digital and administrative efficiency under the vision of 'One Nation, One Time', the press release said. Secretary, Department of Consumer Affairs, Nidhi Khare, in her presentation, highlighted the urgent need for accurate, secure and legally mandated dissemination of IST to ensure uniformity across strategic and non-strategic sectors. S he explained that under the Time Dissemination Project, the Department, in collaboration with CSIR-NPL and ISRO, is establishing an advanced infrastructure comprising five Regional Reference Standard Laboratories (RRSLs) in Ahmedabad, Bengaluru, Bhubaneswar, Faridabad, and Guwahati. These centres are being equipped with atomic clocks and secure synchronisation systems using Network Time Protocol (NTP) and Precision Time Protocol (PTP) to ensure millisecond to microsecond accuracy. According to the press release, Bharat Khera, Additional Secretary, Department of Consumer Affairs, in his welcome address, emphasised that adopting a comprehensive approach to time management strengthens the Government's ability to carry out enforcement activities with greater efficiency, accuracy and coordination, thereby enhancing overall administrative effectiveness. The conference featured expert presentations on time synchronisation challenges and the necessity of reducing dependency on foreign time sources like GPS, which pose risks such as spoofing and jamming. Stakeholders from diverse sectors such as banking, telecom, energy, stock markets and transportation echoed the importance of an indigenous, precise, and verifiable time standard. The Time Dissemination initiative is the result of sustained inter-ministerial coordination and technical consultations since 2018. Meetings were held with the Principal Scientific Adviser, Deputy NSA, Cabinet Secretariat and NSCS. Over 60 meetings have been held by the Department of Consumer Affairs, with extensive engagement with CSIR-NPL, ISRO and other key stakeholders. This sustained engagement led to the formulation of the Draft Legal Metrology (Indian Standard Time) Rules, 2025. For the common man, this initiative translates into more secure digital transactions, accurate billing in utilities, reduced cybercrime risks and synchronised timekeeping in transportation and communication, ensuring fairness, transparency, and trust in day-to-day services. As per the press release, the Round Table Conference witnessed active participation from over 100 stakeholders representing a broad spectrum of sectors. These included senior officials from key Government Ministries and Departments such as the Department of Telecommunication, Ministry of Power, Ministry of Electronics & IT, Ministry of Finance, SEBI, NSCS, Railways, and the Central Bank of India. Technical partners from CSIR-NPL and ISRO also played a central role. Leading public and private sector organisations like Power Grid, RailTel, BSNL, NSE, BSE and major telecom and internet service providers such as Reliance Jio, Airtel, Sify and Tata Communications participated. Industry associations, including FICCI, CII, ASSOCHAM, PHD Chamber, COAI and TEMA, were well-represented, alongside key cybersecurity and digital infrastructure stakeholders like CERT-In, NIC, NCIIPC and CCA. Voluntary Consumer Organisations (VCOs) and representatives from ICICI, Bank of Baroda and various other stakeholders also contributed to the discussions, reaffirming collective national support for the adoption of Indian Standard Time across sectors. (ANI)
