Thu. Mar 28th, 2024
e-Commerce

The government has mandated the e-commerce companies to declare the expiry dates and maximum retail prices(MRP) of packaged consumer products which they sell online. This decision is made in the favour of the consumers as they will be protected from the selling of old goods.

The Ministry of Consumer Affairs made an amendment on June 23rd in the Legal Metrology Rules, 2011. According to this new rule, e-Commerce companies and online marketplaces have to display the expiry date, the MRP, and the country of origin of the products being sold on their platforms. The rule comes into effect from January 1, 2018.

The new Legal Metrology Amendment Rules, 2017 states “An e-Commerce entity shall ensure that the mandatory declarations as specified, except the month and year in which the commodity is manufactured or packed, shall be displayed on the digital and electronic network used for e-commerce transactions”.

Grocery platforms BigBasket and Grofers will hold the responsibility of their products. While Flipkart and Amazon India who just provide the platform for the sellers and do not own any inventory have to ensure due diligence before dispatching the products. Otherwise, they will be responsible for this fault and will be treated as culprit under the new rule.

By Bharat