Govt notifies new monetary limits for consumer courts to cut delays in settling disputes

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The government has notified new rules defining the monetary jurisdiction of the 3-tier Consumer Commissions as the earlier limits had led to an increase in the backlog of cases related to consumer disputes with the District Commissions and justice was being delayed, according to an official statement issued on Thursday.</p>
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 1. District Commissions shall have jurisdiction to entertain complaints where value of the goods or services paid as consideration does not exceed 50 lakh rupees.</p>
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 2. State Commissions shall have jurisdiction to entertain complaints where value of the goods or services paid as consideration exceeds 50 lakh rupees but does not exceed 2 crore rupees.</p>
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 3. National Commission shall have jurisdiction to entertain complaints where value of the goods or services paid as consideration exceeds 2 crore rupees.</p>
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Under the earlier rules District Commissions had jurisdiction to entertain complaints where value of the goods or services paid as consideration does not exceed one crore rupees. State Commissions had jurisdiction to entertain complaints where value of the goods or services exceeded 1 crore rupees, but did not exceed 10 crore rupees and National Commission had jurisdiction to entertain complaints where value of goods or services exceeding 10 crore rupees.</p>
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The official statement also pointed out that the Consumer Protection Act, 2019 stipulates that every complaint shall be disposed of as expeditiously as possible and endeavour shall be made to decide the complaint within a period of 3 months from the date of receipt of notice by opposite party where the complaint does not require analysis or testing of commodities and within 5 months if it requires analysis or testing of commodities.</p>