The Central Consumer Protection Authority (CCPA), the country’s consumer watchdog, has imposed a fine of Rs 1 lakh on e-commerce major Amazon for selling pressure cookers in violation of mandatory standards.

The CCPA has directed Amazon to notify consumers of 2,265 pressure cookers sold through its platform, recall the products and reimburse the amount to the buyers, and submit a compliance report in 45 days. The CCPA, headed by Chief Commissioner Nidhi Khare, has also directed Amazon to pay a penalty of Rs 1 lakh for allowing the sale of pressure cookers in “violation” to Quality Control Order (QCO) and “violating” the rights of consumers. The total amount earned by Amazon on the sale of such pressure cookers through its platform was Rs 6,14,825.

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The authority has initiated suo-moto action against e-commerce platforms such as Paytm Mall, Amazon, Flipkart, Snapdeal, Shopclues, and the sellers registered on these platforms, for the sale of domestic pressure cookers in violation of compulsory standards on its e-commerce platform.

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“Amazon admitted that it earned a ‘sales commission’ fee for the pressure cookers sold on its platform. It was observed by CCPA that when Amazon earns commercially from each sale of the product listed on its e-commerce platform, it cannot disassociate itself in case of issues arising from the sale of products through its platform,” the CCPA said in a statement.

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The statement added that CCPA had issued a similar order of penalty and recall of defective pressure cookers against Paytm Mall, which had complied with directions passed by CCPA and deposited the penalty of 1,00,000.

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The authority also informed that it is constantly monitoring the consumer protection landscape in the country. It has recently issued an advisory to all e-commerce platforms regarding the sale of Ayurvedic, Siddha, and Unani drugs containing ingredients listed in Schedule E (1) of Drugs and Cosmetics Rules. It emphasized that such drugs should be sold only after a valid prescription of a registered medical practitioner is uploaded by the user on the platform.

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Moreover, the CCPA has issued guidelines for the prevention of misleading advertisements and endorsements. This includes conditions for valid and non-misleading advertisements, due diligence required for endorsement of advertisements and considerations for advertisements targeted at children.