Right To Repair:
The Department of Consumer Affairs announced that it has set up a committee chaired by Nidhi Khare, Additional Secretary to develop a comprehensive framework on ‘Right to Repair’.
- The Right to Repair refers to government legislation that is intended to allow consumers the ability to repair and modify their own consumer electronic devices, where otherwise the manufacturer of such devices require the consumer to use only their offered services.
- When customers buy a product, it is inherent that they must own it completely, for which the consumers should be able to repair and modify the product with ease and at reasonable cost, without being captive to the whims of manufacturers for repairs.
- The idea originally originated from the USA where the Motor Vehicle Owners’ Right to Repair Act 2012, required the manufacturers to provide the necessary documents and information to allow anyone to repair their vehicles.
Proposed Framework: - Under this regulatory framework, it would be mandatory for manufacturers to share their product details with customers so that they can either repair them by self or by third parties, rather than depending on original manufacturers.
- The law also aims to help harmonise the trade between the Original Equipment Manufacturers (OEMs) and third-party buyers and sellers, thus also creating new jobs.
- The right to repair has been recognised in many countries across the globe, including the US, UK and European Union.
- In the US, the Federal Trade Commission has directed manufacturers to remedy unfair anti-competitive practices and asked them to make sure that consumers can make repairs, either themselves or by a third-party agency.
