National Consumer Helpline partners with over 1000 companies to resolve consumer grievances
Department of Consumer Affairs, Government of India enhancing Grievance Redressal System with AI-Based Speech Recognition and Multilingual Chatbot; launch on National Consumer Day
Transformative Changes and Technological Upgradation of the Helpline leads to
Exponential Increase in Call Handling Facility
In a significant development, National Consumer Helpline (NCH) has
partnered with over 1000 companies under its Convergence Programme to expedite
grievance resolution. These companies span major sectors, including e-commerce,
travel and tourism, private education, FMCG, consumer durables, electronic
products, retail outlets, automobiles, DTH & cable services, and banking.
Complaints related to these convergence companies are directly transferred to
them for online resolution.
The number of convergence partners has steadily increased from 263
companies in 2017 to 1009 companies as of now. This growth highlights the role
of these partners in enhancing the helpline's efficiency, enabling quick and
effective grievance redressal and promoting transparency and accountability.
The partnerships ensure that consumer complaints are addressed at the
pre-litigation stage, fostering greater consumer trust. However, if a complaint
remains unresolved, consumers are encouraged to approach the appropriate
Consumer Commission under the Consumer Protection Act, 2019.
The Department of Consumer Affairs (DoCA), Government of India,
regularly monitors grievance data to improve the grievance redressal process.
Recently, the Department identified the top ten non-convergence companies that
have received the highest number of grievances during the current fiscal year
(2024-25). These companies include Delhivery Limited, Electronicscomp.com,
Domino’s Pizza, Haier Appliances India Pvt. Ltd, FirstCry.com, Thomson India,
Mahindra & Mahindra, Rapido, Orient Electric Limited, and Symphony Limited.
A meeting with these companies is scheduled for next week, to discuss and
address the ongoing grievances and to bring them onboard as convergence
partners.
The technological transformation of NCH has led to a significant
increase in its call-handling capacity. The number of calls received by NCH has
grown nearly tenfold, from 14,795 calls in January 2015 to 1,41,817 calls in
January 2024. This exponential growth reflects the rising confidence of consumers
in using the helpline to register their grievances. The average number of
complaints registered per month has surged from 37,062 in 2017 to 1,12,468 in
2024.
In a move to further improve the grievance redressal system, NCH is in
the process of introducing AI-based Speech Recognition, a Translation System,
and a Multilingual Chatbot as part of the NCH 2.0 initiative. These
technological upgrades are aimed at making the grievance filing process more
seamless, efficient, and inclusive.
The AI-powered Speech Recognition and Translation System will allow
consumers to file complaints through voice input in their local languages,
minimizing manual intervention. The Multilingual Chatbot will further
streamline the complaint-handling process by providing real-time assistance,
reducing manual data entry, and enhancing the overall user experience.
These changes will ensure that consumers from all linguistic backgrounds
have equal access to the grievance redressal system. The Department of Consumer
Affairs is committed to providing a hassle-free, speedy, and cost-effective
grievance resolution process. The introduction of Generative AI, speech
recognition, translation, and chatbot technologies under the NCH 2.0 initiative
will mark a significant step in improving consumer protection at the
pre-litigation stage.
The Department has revamped the National Consumer Helpline (NCH), making
it the central point of access for consumers across India to seek grievance
redressal at the pre-litigation stage. The helpline is available in 17
languages, including Hindi, English, Kashmiri, Punjabi, Nepali, Gujarati, Marathi,
Kannada, Telugu, Tamil, Malayalam, Maithili, Santhali, Bengali, Odia, Assamese,
and Manipuri, allowing consumers from all regions to register their grievances
via the toll-free number 1915. Grievances can also be registered on the
Integrated Grievance Redressal Mechanism (INGRAM) portal, a centralized
IT-enabled system that offers multiple channels for filing complaints, such as
WhatsApp, SMS, email, NCH app, web portal, and the Umang app.
Once complaints are received, NCH forwards them to the respective
companies, regulators, or government departments for resolution.