The matter is now expected to be raised with the PMO.
Gujarat Chief Minister Bhupendra Patel allocated portfolios following a major cabinet reshuffle, with Harsh Sanghavi becoming Deputy CM and receiving Home and Industries. New ministers, including Rivaba Jadeja, were also assigned responsibilities.
The Ministry of Consumer Affairs is looking into complaints of additional charges being levied by ecommerce platforms when customers choose cash-on-delivery (COD) option instead of paying while ordering items. "The Department of Consumer Affairs has received complaints against ecommerce platforms charging extra for cash-on-delivery, a practice classified as a dark pattern that misleads and exploits consumers," Pralhad Joshi, Union minister of consumer affairs, wrote on X on Friday afternoon.
As many as 26 top e-commerce companies, including Zepto, BigBasket and Zomato, have given an undertaking that their platforms are free from misleading claims and unfair trade practices which constitute 'dark patterns', the government said on Thursday.
Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar's assets have increased slightly to Rs 1.65 crore, while several ministers are wealthier, according to the latest asset disclosure.
The Delhi High Court refused to entertain a PIL seeking compensation for passengers affected by IndiGo flight cancellations, citing an ongoing related case.
The home portfolio of Bihar, which Chief Minister Nitish Kumar kept with himself all through his nearly 20-year-long tenure, has been given to his deputy, BJP leader Samrat Chowdhury, this time, according to an official notification issued on Friday.
The ministries of Road Transport & Highways and Railways have exceeded the national average capital expenditure (capex) by spending 63 per cent and 57 per cent of Budget estimates (BE), respectively, in the first half of 2025-26 (FY26). The total capital expenditure for April-September of FY26 stood at 52 per cent of the BE, according to the latest data by the Controller General of Accounts (CGA).
The government on Wednesday asked e-commerce platforms to conduct annual internal audits to make sure that they are not resorting to manipulative tactics to mislead consumers and prevent them from making right choices -- a technique commonly referred to as dark pattern -- and submit reports to the Department of Consumer Affairs (DoCA). It comes just a week after Uber was issued a notice by the Central Consumer Protection Authority (CCPA) over its "advance tip" feature.
CPGRAMS -- an online platform available to citizens 24x7 to lodge their grievances to public authorities on service delivery -- has existed for close to two decades. But it has never been this active, points out Tamal Bandyopadhyay.
Consumer Affairs Minister Pralhad Joshi said on Thursday that the Consumer Protection Authority (CCPA) has issued notices to cab aggregators Ola and Uber for alleged differential pricing for identical rides based on the user's mobile operating system -- Android or iOS.
Jharkhand Chief Minister Hemant Soren has distributed portfolios among the new ministers, keeping key departments such as Home, Personnel, and several others to himself. The Congress' Radhakrishna Kishore was given Finance, Commercial Tax, Planning and Development Department, and Parliamentary Affairs departments. JMM's Deepak Biruwa was allotted the departments of Revenue, Registration and Land Reforms (non-registration), and Transport. Chamra Linda, another JMM leader, was allotted the departments of Schedule Tribes, Scheduled Castes, Backward Classes (except Minority Welfare). RJD's Sanjay Prasad Yadav was given the departments of Industries, and Labour, Planning, Training and Skill Development. The Congress' Irfan Ansari got Health, Medical Education and Family Welfare, besides Food, Public Distribution and Consumer Affairs, and Disaster Management departments. The chief minister also kept to himself the departments of Cabinet Secretariat, Personnel, Administrative Reforms and Official Language, Road Construction, Building Construction, and those departments yet to be distributed to anyone. Among the other ministers, JMM's Ramdas Soren was given the School Education and Literacy, and Registration departments. Party colleague Hafizul Hasan was allotted the departments of Water Resources, and Minority Welfare Department. Panchayati Raj, Rural Works, and Rural Development departments were given to Congress MLA Deepika Pandey Singh. The CM gave Drinking Water and Sanitation, and Excise and Prohibition departments to JMM's Yogendra Prasad. JMM legislator Sudhivya Kumar became the minister for Urban Development and Housing, Higher and Technical Education, and Tourism, Art Culture, Sports and Youth Affairs departments. Shilpi Neha Tirkey of the Congress was allotted Agriculture, Animal Husbandry and Cooperative Department. A total of 11 MLAs took oath as ministers in the Hemant Soren government in Jharkhand on Thursday.
Consumer Affairs Minister Pralhad Joshi said on Thursday said the Consumer Protection Authority (CCPA) has issued a notice to Apple Inc regarding alleged performance problems with iPhones following the iOS 18+ software update.
Given that a sizeable part of this money is part of the coveted current accounts and savings accounts, it is surprising that banks are not in a hurry to revive these accounts, notes Tamal Bandyopdhyay.
'It was like rigorously preparing for a solid, good exam...' 'I don't know what marks I will get, but I felt the rigorous preparation of an exam.' 'You may sweat, but I feel rejuvenated.'
The Centre on Monday started selling tomatoes at a subsidised rate of Rs 65 per kg in the national capital to provide relief to the common man and check abnormal profits by intermediaries. Tomatoes are being sold at an average rate of Rs 90 per kg in the national capital.
'...it should not delude itself into thinking that India's security or its great-power ambitions will be advanced by those partnerships.'
'Instead, what India should focus on is on riding out the next three-and-a-half years of Trump's presidency with minimal damage to itself.'
The government's subsidised onion sale initiative, launched on September 5, has led to price drops in major cities within days, the consumer affairs ministry said on Saturday. In Delhi, retail onion price fell from Rs 60 to Rs 55 per kg, while Mumbai saw a decrease from Rs 61 to Rs 56 per kg. In Chennai, the retail price reduced from Rs 65 to Rs 58 per kg, the ministry said in a statement.
In a significant move to control spiralling onion prices ahead of the festive season, the government will transport 1,600 tonnes of buffer stock via railways from Maharashtra to Delhi - the first such initiative using rail transport for the kitchen staple. The special rake, dubbed 'Kanda Express', will depart from Maharashtra's Lasalgaon Railway Station and reach Delhi's Kishanganj Railway Station on October 20, Consumer Affairs Secretary Nidhi Khare announced on Thursday. The government expects this bulk movement to help stabilise prices in the Delhi-NCR region, where buffer stock onions are currently being sold at a subsidised rate of Rs 35 per kg.
Amid the ongoing controversy over Tirupati laddu, Consumer Affairs Secretary Nidhi Khare on Monday said her department will consider additional measures to monitor ghee quality in the market only after receiving the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) report.
The scale of illegal gambling and betting in India is staggering, with 1.6 billion visits recorded between October and December 2024 across four analysed platforms -- Parimatch, Stake, 1xBet, and Battery Bet.
As many as 81 per cent people support having rules for consumer e-commerce, but want more services-based platforms to have more clearly defined roles, a survey by community social media platform LocalCircles has found. The survey asked respondents to answer questions based on the recent draft Rules proposed by the ministry of consumer affairs. The responses found 81 per cent consumers wanting sales of products and services over electronic or digital networks to be governed by a set of electronic commerce rules.
The Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) has sought a meeting with quick-commerce (qcom) platforms like Blinkit, Swiggy Instamart and Zepto on Tuesday to discuss issues regarding violations of food safety standards, according to sources familiar with the matter. This comes at a time when there have been issues raised about food safety standard violations by qcom platforms for packaged food products, including violations related to expiry and best before dates.
The Nitish Kumar government in Bihar on Tuesday announced 10 per cent reservation for economically weaker sections (EWS) in the judicial services, and the state-run law colleges and universities.
India's economic growth forecast for 2025 has been revised downward to 6.3 per cent, and despite a projected moderation, the country remains one of the fastest-growing large economies, supported by resilient consumption and government spending, the United Nations has said.
The highest-ever goods and services tax (GST) evasion has been done by the online money gaming industry.
The department of personnel and training has asked the Union Public Service Commission to recruit such specialists through "lateral entry" mode in 12 government departments/ministries, he said.
So far, over 30 people have died across Northeastern states due to heavy rainfalls, floods and landslides, according to media reports.
'The cooperation in technology is one of the most important aspects of the visit.' 'It will have a long-lasting impact because it will shift the entire paradigm in the context of artificial intelligence and emerging technologies.'
Wholesale price based inflation declined to a 3-month low of 1.89 per cent in November on cheaper food items, and experts predicted a 0.25 per cent interest rate cut by the RBI in the policy review in February. The Wholesale Price Index (WPI) based inflation was 2.36 per cent in October 2024. It was 0.39 per cent in November, last year. In August, 2024, it was 1.25 per cent.
The government on Friday scrapped a minimum price threshold that it had set previously for exports of onion as it looked to pass on the benefit of international glut to Indian farmers. The government had previously fixed a $550 per tonne as the minimum export price (MEP), which essentially meant farmers could not sell their produce overseas at lower than this rate.
Following the eviction of protesting farmers from the Shambhu border, Haryana security personnel began removing cemented barricades erected to prevent Punjab farmers from reaching Delhi. The Shambhu-Ambala road, closed for over a year, is being cleared with JCBs and other machinery. Meanwhile, the Samyukta Kisan Morcha (Non-Political) and the Kisan Mazdoor Morcha announced dharnas outside deputy commissioners' offices in protest against the Punjab Police crackdown. The groups criticized the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) government in Punjab for evicting the protesters and detaining farmer leaders on Wednesday. The police action was justified by Punjab Finance Minister Harpal Singh Cheema, who said industries and businesses were hit hard due to the prolonged closure of the highways. The protesting farmers, led by the Samyukta Kisan Morcha and the Kisan Mazdoor Morcha, had been camping at the Shambhu and Khanauri border points since February 13, 2022.
The government is planning to collaborate with industry stakeholders, including influencer marketing companies, to prepare and promote guidelines to help them understand the rules better and improve compliance. During a discussion with influencers, content creators, and their agencies on the recently released guidelines for celebrities, influencers, and virtual influencers on social media platforms, Rohit Kumar Singh, consumer affairs secretary, suggested forming a self-regulatory organisation for influencer marketing companies and the development of a creator or influencer recognition programme in collaboration with the industry.
Tomato prices soared to Rs 100 per kg in retail markets of the national capital on Saturday as adverse weather conditions in various parts of the country continue to affect supplies of the essential kitchen staple. Tomatoes are available at Rs 100 per kg at Mother Dairy's retail outlets, Safal, in the national capital.
'The ministry may like to consider setting up an ombudsman similar to electricity ombudsman and insurance ombudsman, to ensure a time-bound resolution of consumer issues within the airline sector.'
In a statement, the department of consumer affairs said about 18,000 kg of tomatoes were sold across Delhi-NCR to retail consumers.
Here is the complete list of ministers in Modi 3.0 and their portfolios:
The Centre has appointed senior IAS officers Vumlunmang Vualnam and Neeraj Mittal as new secretaries in the ministry of civil aviation and the department of telecommunications respectively in a major secretary-level bureaucratic reshuffle, a government order stated.
The government on Wednesday directed online travel aggregators to process pending refunds related to air ticket bookings during the coronavirus lockdown period by the third week of November. In the wake of the coronavirus pandemic, there was a nationwide lockdown for varying periods starting from March 25, 2020, and scheduled commercial flight services were also suspended for a certain period. On Wednesday, the consumer affairs ministry held a meeting with online travel aggregators to discuss issues prejudicial to consumer interest in the travel sector.
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