The Hindu : CPC cautions against dubious finance firms

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Monday, Mar 15, 2004

Andhra Pradesh

Andhra Pradesh

CPC cautions against dubious finance firms

By Our Special Correspondent

VISAKHAPATNAM, MARCH 14. The Consumers' Protection Council (CPC) in the city has successfully settled 49 cases amicably and achieved favourable verdicts in the majority of 109 cases it had filed, in the Visakhapatnam District Consumer Forum during the last ten years.

Informing this to reporters on the eve of World Consumer Rights Day here on Sunday, the CPC president, M. Krishna Murthy, said that most of the cases reported to the CPC for guidance pertained to real estate deals and finance companies in which the consumers had deposited their money.

Consumers should also not invest in finance companies offering higher rate of interest, as most of these companies were not repaying money after maturity, he cautioned.

One of the finance companies, Nagarjuna Finance, had obtained a stay in the Andhra Pradesh High Court, which was vacated last July-August after a period of two years. Even after the forum gave orders, the finance companies and realtors were not complying with them immediately, he said.

In this context, he praised the efforts of the Visakhapatnam District Consumer Forum for its speedy disposal of cases, which came as a great relief to the consumers. The CPC, on its part, was organising several awareness and education programmes for consumers, particularly on the occasion of World Consumer Rights Day, and one such programme would be held on Monday, he said. He also urged consumers to heed the advice of the Visakhapatnam Urban Development Authority (VUDA) not to deal with realtors indulging in unauthorised sale of plots without VUDA approval. The CPC organising secretary, P. K. Lingeswara Rao, said the CPC was trying to settle most of the cases in an amicable manner. The secretary, G.A. Ramakrishna, also spoke.

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