INTRODUCTION

An individual who buys products or services for personal use and not for manufacture or resale. A
consumer is someone who can make the decision whether or not to purchase an item at the store,
and someone who can be influenced by marketing and advertisements. Any time someone goes to
a store and purchases a toy, shirt, beverage, or anything else, they are making that decision as a
consumer. A consumer is a person or organization that uses economic services or commodities
The consumer is the one who pays to consume goods and services produced. As
such, consumers play a vital role in the economic system of a nation. Without
consumer demand, producers would lack one of the key motivations to produce: to sell to
consumers. The consumer also forms part of the chain of distribution.

In this age of capitalism and globalization, the main objective of each producer is to maximize his
profit. In each and every possible way the producer are trying to increase the sale of their
products. Therefore, in fulfilment of their aim they forget the interests of consumer s and start
exploiting them for example overcharging, under weighing, selling of adulterated and poor quality
goods, misleading the consumers by giving false advertisement etc. Thus in order to save himself
from being cheated, it is necessary for a consumer to be aware. In this way, consumer
awareness means creating awareness of a consumer towards his rights and duties.

It has been observed very often that a consumer does not get right goods and services. He is
charged a very high price or adulterated or low quality goods are sold to him. Therefore it is
necessary to make him aware. Following facts classify the need of making consumers aware:
1. To achieve maximum satisfaction : The income of every individual is limited. He wants to buy
maximum goods and services with his income. He gets full satisfaction only by this limited
adjustment. Therefore it is necessary that he should get the goods which are measured
appropriately and he should not be cheated in any way. For this he should be made aware.
2. Protection against exploitation : Producers and sellers exploit the consumers in many ways as
underweighting, taking more price than the market price, selling duplicate goods etc. Big
companies through their advertisement also mislead the consumers. Consumer awareness shields
them from the exploitation by producers and sellers.
3.Control over consumption of harmful goods : There are several such goods available in market
which cause harm to some consumers. For example we can take goods like cigarette, tobacco,
liquor etc. The consumer education and awareness motivate people not to purchase such goods
which are very harmful for them.
4. Motivation for saving : The awareness controls people from wastage of money and
extravagancy and inspire them to take right decision. Such consumers are not attracted by sale,
concession, free gifts, attractive packing etc due to which people can use their income in a right
way and can save money.
5. Knowledge regarding solution of problems : The consumers are cheated due to illiteracy,
innocence and lack of information. Therefore it becomes necessary that the information about their
rights should be provided to them so that they cannot be cheated by producers and sellers.
Through consumer awareness they are also made known to the proceedings of laws so that they
can solve their problems.
6. Construction of healthy society : Every member of the society is a consumer. So, if the
consumer is aware and rationale, then complete society becomes healthy and alert towards their
rights.
 OBJECTIVES

The main objectives of the study are as

follows:
1. To evaluate the changing profile of
the rural consumers in India
2. To study the level of awareness, of rural consumers
on various consumerprotection measures initiated by
the Government of India and other agencies.
3. To evaluate the rural consumers current knowledge
, attitudes, behaviourand practices while purchasing
goods or availing services.
4. To examine the nature of unfair trade practices
in the rural areas.
HYPOTHESIS

NEED OF CONSUMER
AWARENESS IN
RURAL AREAS IS
MORE THAN URBAN
AREAS
 RESEARCH
QUESTIONS
Q. 1 Why there is a need of consumer awareness in
rural areas?

Q.2 What are the measures taken by Government to

spread consumer awareness in rural areas?

Q.3 What are the various ways in which the

consumers are exploited?

Q.4 What are the various types of consumer

awareness?

Q. 5 What are the various rights and duties of a

consumer?
Q.6 What are the various remedies and legal help
available to the consumer?
 SAMPLING

SAMPLE SIZE= 100

AREA OF STUDY= VILLAGE

GANGA,HARYANA

THE SAMPLING METHOD CHOSEN BY ME IS RANDOM

SAMPLING METHOD. THE TECHNIQUE UNDER

RANDOM SAMPLING METHOD CHOSEN IS LOTTERY

METHOD.
 RESEARCH METHODOLOGY

RESEARCH METHOD- EXPLANATORY OR DESCRIPTIVE

METHOD

SOURCES OF DATA COLLECTION- PRIMARY AND

SECONDARY .

RESEARCH TOOLS- INTERVIEW SCHEDULE

 CONCLUSION

IN THE END I WOULD LIKE TO CONCLUDE THAT THERE IS A LACK OF

CONSUMER AWARENESS IN RURAL AREAS due to the lack of knowledge,

education as well as awareness regarding their rights, duties, responsibilities

and remedies available to them.

although government and NGOs are taking various steps to improve the

position of the consumers in the rural areas. various campaigns and rallies are

organised in the rural areas by the government and various NGOs to spread

awareness.
VADODARA: Jagrut Grahak, a consumer protection NGO, has started targeting rural areas in a bid
to create awareness on consumer rights.Having covered city schools Vadodara, they are now going
to rural schools, to give students a lessons in identifying malpractice.

Their first school is Sabari School Karjan taluka. In this classroom, students are not expected to
remember dates from history, or solve maths puzzle memorise a formula or poem. The main focus
was on food and chemical adulteration, both, which affect the children directly. Catching them
young, so that they learn not to compromise on quality or overlook deficiencies, instead, question
any malpractice, what this Vadodara-based consumer protection organisation plans to do.

"During our school awareness programme, we address issues relevant to school situation. Most
commonly discussed problems are adulteration of food and chemicals used in the laboratory.
Recently we had a programme in a Karjan school co-sponsored by Sabari Education Trust and
Islamic Study Centre," informs field director of Jagrut Grahak Narhari Shah. Treading into maiden
territories to spread consumer awareness, Jagrut Grahak has recently launched a scheme to open
district consumer information centres in the rural areas.