This is a clear abandonment of its duties and abdication of its statutory role as protector of the interest of the consumer who has to bear the brunt of unjustifiable prices. The authority is under legal obligation to assure rights of the consumer to be protected against exploitation of cartels. The Ogra should ensure that no price formula be evolved without the mandatory meaningful participation of registered consumer bodies.
The policy guidelines evolved under the ECC Sub-Committee for Ogra should not be time bound, and they should contain the international principles for consumer protection. Ogra should develop efficient consumer complain mechanism comprising very well-detailed procedures that should be publicised and consumers should be encouraged to make the complaints.
These complaints should be analysed periodically and the reports be made public, through website & print media including the measures Ogra has taken to prevent the re-occurrences of such problems that resulted in such complaints. The consumer redress mechanism should not cost consumer anything and should be having minimum opportunity cost for the complaining consumer. The CNG related subsidy should be targeted towards the poor and lower income segments of the society, and the impact of the subsidy should be periodically analysed and reported to the public through website and print media.
The CNG price determination is a complex mechanism. Ogra needs to go through consultation along other stakeholders, furthermore engage the services of the treasurer to design and develop price mechanisms. It should make efforts to encourage formation of consumer bodies and educate them. The Ogra should involve the consumer councils as has been provided for in the provincial Consumer Protection Law.-PR