Excelsior Correspondent
JAMMU, Jan 2: The State Government mulls bringing three consumer related legislations in the current Budget Session, the Minister for Food, Civil Supplies and Consumer Affairs Choudhary Zulfkar Ali said today.
The Minister said this at the 19th State Consumer Protection Council (SCPC) meeting held at Udyog Bhawan here.
The Minister said the Government intends to present Jammu and Kashmir (J&K) Legal Metrology Bill 2017, J&K Consumer Protection (Amendment) Bill 2017 and J&K Hoarding and Profiteering Prevention Bill, 2017 in the present Budget Session.
The meeting was informed that while J&K Legal Metrology Bill 2017 would repeal J&K Weights and Measures Act 1997, the amendment to J&K Consumer Protection Bill 2017 would amend J&K Consumer Protection Bill 1987 by incorporating new provisions like State Consumer Protection Authority, Alternative Dispute Redressal Mechanism and Product Liability. It was further informed that introduction of J&K Hoarding and Profiteering Prevention Bill 2017 would repeal J&K Hoarding and Profiteering Ordinance SMVT 2000 (1942 AD).
The Minister asked the members of the Council to provide their feedback at an earliest to make the bills more effective.
Appreciating the members for their support, the Minister said that the department’s focus is to do more for ensuring that consumer rights are protected and upheld in their true spirit.
Later, the Minister also releases the Departmental Calendar for 2017.
Meanwhile, Choudhary Zulfkar Ali stressed on the need for immediate switch over to digitalization of the department.
The Minister called digitization need of the hour and said failure to adapt the technology would only hamper in the growth of the State.
Speaking during a review meeting, the Minister said that Union Government is asking the State Governments to go for cashless transactions. However, if the State in general and the FCS&CA department in particular failed to make immediate switch to digitized mode, it would put a stop on initiatives for the department.
Reiterating the need to make the department online, the Minister said with everything connected through internet, everyone from secretarial staff to the staff in Direction Offices in both provinces would be aware with every update, including allocation, distribution, and other things in the department.
During the meeting, the Minister issued stern directions for putting up a complete stop on manual allocation of food grains from next month, and said that from next month everything allotted would be done through online mode only.
Secretary FCS&CA Shafiq Raina, Special Secretary FCS&CA Nisar Ahmad, Director FCS&CA Jammu G S Chib, Director FCS&CA, Kashmir, Tassaduq Jeelani, Deputy Director Supplies, Mohammad Aslam, and other concerned officers attended the meeting.
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