Tips for Safe Online Financial Transactions  

Tips for Safe Online Financial Transactions  

by | May 14, 2022 | Banking & Finance

Tips for Safe Online Financial Transactions  

The country is moving towards Digital India. There are many benefits of going digital. Along with advantages, it also has its disadvantages. Many incidents of online financial fraud keep coming to the fore from across the country. With the increase in digital transactions, the incidents of financial fraud have also increased.

Many people fall into the trap of scammers. If you have also been a victim of online fraud, then you can get your money back by following some things. You also need to take immediate action on it.

                                                                                                                                  Subas Tiwari

The sooner you take action, the higher the chance that your money will be returned to your account. Many times people do not understand in this situation what they should do and money gets out of hand. If you become a victim of an online financial scam, inform your bank immediately.

If money has been deducted from your account, then you should file a complaint about it within three days. You can complain about this at https://www.cybercrime.gov.in/ or by visiting the local police station.

If you take timely action regarding cyber fraud, then you will not suffer any kind of loss. If you have not shared the OTP, then you will get the refund within 10 days. If you fall victim to this scam, then inform the bank about it in writing and keep a copy with you as well.

The Union Home Ministry has issued a national helpline number for filing complaints of online fraud or cybercrime. This number is – 1930 (earlier 155260). If you are the victim of any such accident or crime, then call this number immediately. You can file a fraud complaint on this number.

Options for reporting cybercrimes on the portal

Report Crime related to Women/ Child – Under this section, you can report complaints pertaining to online Child Pornography (CP), Child Sexual Abuse Material (CSAM) or sexually explicit content such as Rape/Gang Rape (CP/RGR) content.

Report other Cybercrimes – Under this option, you can report complaints pertaining to cybercrimes such as mobile crimes, online and social media crimes, online financial frauds, ransomware, hacking, cryptocurrency crimes and online cyber trafficking.

What kind of information would you provide to report complaint?

There are two options for filing a report on www.cybercrime.gov.in: (i) Report Crime related to Women/ Child and (ii) Report Other Cybercrimes. In case of “Report Crime related to Women/ Child”, there are two ways of registering your complaint:

Report Anonymously – You can report crimes related to online Child Pornography/ Rape or Gang Rape (CP/RGR) content anonymously. You do not need to provide any personal information. However, information related to the complaint should be accurate and complete for the police authorities to take necessary action.

Report and Track – Under this option, fields marked with a red asterisk (*) are mandatory. It is important that the police authorities receive accurate and complete information related to the complaint. Therefore, you should provide required information such as your name, phone number, email address, details of the complaint and necessary information supporting the complaint.

Initially, register yourself using your name and valid Indian mobile number. You will receive a One Time Password (OTP) on your mobile number. The OTP remains valid for 30 minutes only. Once you successfully register your mobile number on the portal, you will be able to report the complaint.

You can use “Report Other Cybercrimes” option available on the portal to report other cybercrimes such as mobile crimes, online and social media crimes, online financial frauds, ransomware, hacking, cryptocurrency crimes and online cyber trafficking. You are required to register yourself using your name and valid Indian mobile number. You will receive a One Time Password (OTP) on your mobile number. The OTP remains valid for 30 minutes only. Once you successfully register your mobile number on the portal, you will be able to report the complaint by selecting appropriate category and sub- category.

Information considered as evidence while filing complaint related to cybercrime

It is important to keep any evidence you may have related to your complaint. Evidence may include:

  • Credit card receipt
  • Bank statement
  • Envelope (if received a letter or item through mail or courier)
  • Brochure/Pamphlet
  • Online money transfer receipt
  • Copy of email
  • URL of webpage
  • Chat transcripts
  • Suspect mobile number screenshot
  • Videos
  • Images
  • Any other kind of document

 Tips for Safe Online Transactions

  1. Never disclose your net banking password, One Time Password (OTP), ATM or phone banking PIN, CVV number, expiry date to anyone, even if they claim to be from your bank. Also, never respond to mails asking for above details which seem to have received from your bank.
  2. No bank or its employees will ever call or email you requesting for your net banking password, One Time Password (OTP), ATM or phone banking PIN, CVV number, etc. Such cases should be immediately reported to your bank.
  3. Always use strong passwords and prefer separate ID/password combinations for different accounts to prevent anyone from guessing them.
  4. Periodically change passwords of your online banking accounts.
  5. To make passwords strong, use alphabets in upper case and lower case, numbers and special characters. Do not use passwords such as Jan@2018, admin@123, password@123, your date of birth, etc.
  6. Always use virtual keyboards while logging into online banking services. This is specially adhered in-case you need to access net banking facility from a public computer/ cyber café or a shared computer.
  7. Do not make financial transaction over shared public computers or while using public Wi-Fi networks. These computers might have key loggers installed which are designed to capture input from keyboards and could enable fraudsters to steal your username and password.
  8. Always remember to log off from your online banking portal/ website after completing an online transaction with your credit/ debit card.
  9. Always delete the browsing data of your web browser (Internet Explorer, Chrome, Firefox etc.) after completing your online banking activity.
  10. Always be sure about the correct address of the bank website and look for the ‘‘lock’’ icon on the browser’s status bar while visiting your bank’s website or conducting an online transaction. Always be sure ‘‘https’’ appears in the website’s address bar before making an online transaction. The ‘‘s’’ stands for ‘‘secure’’ and indicates that the communication with the webpage is encrypted.
  11. Login and view your bank account activity regularly to make sure that there are no unexpected transactions. Report any discrepancies in your account to your bank immediately.
  12. Keep your bank’s customer care number handy so that you can report any suspicious or unauthorized transactions on your account immediately.
  13. It is easy for cyber criminals to send convincing emails which appear to be from your bank. Don’t click on the links provided in such emails even if they look genuine. They could lead you to malicious websites.
  14. Whenever you receive a credit/ debit card from the bank, make sure the letter is not damaged and it is sealed properly. In-case, there are any signs of tampering with the package, please notify your bank immediately.
  15. Make sure to change the PIN of credit/ debit card after receiving a new card from your bank. The PIN can be changed online by visiting your bank’s website or at your nearest ATM machine.
  16. Always ensure that credit or debit card swipes at point of sale are done in your presence to avoid cloning/unauthorized copying of your card information. Do not let the sales person take your card away to swipe for the transaction.
  17. Take extra precaution while typing your password/PIN so that no one sees it. Try to cover the key-pad with your other hand while you type your PIN to avoid the number being picked up by someone monitoring CCTV footage.
  18. Register your personal phone number with your bank and subscribe to mobile notifications. These notifications will alert you quickly of any suspicious transaction and the unsuccessful login attempts to your net banking account.
  19. Always review transaction alert received on your registered mobile number and ensure that your transaction is billed according to your purchase.
  20. Keep an eye on the people around you while transacting at an ATM. Make sure that no one is standing too close to you while you transact at an ATM.
  21. It is necessary that you keep your PIN secret and close your transaction completely before walking away from the ATM machine. If there is anything suspicious, cancel your transaction and walk away immediately.
  22. Enable international transaction option on your credit card only when you are travelling abroad. Always ensure to disable international transaction option on your card upon return to your country.
  23. Fraudsters may call your family members posing as hospital staff and may request for money transfer saying that you have met an accident and you are in urgent need of money. This could be a spam. Before entertaining any such request, contact your family member to confirm their whereabouts and check authenticity of the phone call.
  24. Check for latest updates of your smartphones operating system if you are using your mobile phone for online banking. Do install an antivirus as well and keep it up-to date by enabling the automatic update feature.
  25. Always ignore an advertisement if it claims that you can earn money with little or no work or you can make money on an investment with little or no risk. It could be a scam. These offers seem too good to be true, and you may end up losing money.
  26. Always use familiar websites for online shopping rather than shopping by searching products on search engines. Search results can be misleading and may lead to malicious websites.
  27. Avoid using third-party extensions, plugins or add-ons for your web browser as it may secretly track your activity and steal your personal details.
  28. Always verify and install authentic e-wallet apps directly from the app store on your smartphone. Do not follow links shared over email, SMS or social media to install e-wallet apps.
  29. Do not save your card or bank account details in your e-wallet as it increases the risk of theft or fraudulent transactions in case of a security breach.

Always type the information in online forms and not use the auto-fill option on your web-browser to fill your online forms they may store your personal information such as card number, CVV number, bank account number, etc.

The increased usage of internet services and smartphones has made social networking one of the most popular online activities. Social media enables users to connect, communicate and share information, photographs or videos with anyone across the globe. Some of the popular social media platforms are Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, YouTube, LinkedIn, WhatsApp, Snapchat, Tinder, Hike, WeChat, Tumblr, etc.

The penetration of social media is continuously increasing worldwide. The tremendous growth in use of social media platforms/ social networking platforms has provided a fertile ground to cyber criminals to engage in illegal activities.

Here are some of important steps you should take to protect yourself and your information while using social media platforms:

  1. Do not accept friend requests from strangers on social networking sites.
  2. Do not trust online users unless you know and can trust them in real life.
  3. Do not share your personal information such as address, phone number, date of birth, etc. on social media. Identity thieves can easily access and use this information.
  4. Do not share your sensitive personal photographs and videos on social media.
  5. Share your photos and videos only with your trusted friends by selecting right privacy settings on social media.
  6. Immediately inform the social media service provider, if you notice that a fake account has been created by using your personal information.
  7. Always use a strong password by using alphabets in upper case and lower case, numbers and special characters for your social media accounts.
  8. Do not share your vacations, travel plans, etc. on social media.
  9. Do not allow social networking sites to scan your email account to look for your friends and send spam mails to them without your consent or knowledge.
  10. Always keep location services turned off on your devices unless necessary.
  11. Do not announce your vacations, travel plans, etc. on social media. Criminals can use it as an opportunity for theft, etc.
  12. When chatting with someone online and you feel suspicious about your chat partner, try asking some unrelated scientific or mathematical questions. If it does not answer or acknowledge the question, it may mean that you are chatting with an automated computer bot.
  13. Do not use public computer/ cyber cafe to access social networking websites, it may be may be infected/ installed with a key logger application which will capture your keystrokes including the login credentials.
  14. Many social networking sites prompt you to download third-party applications that lets you access more pages. Do not download unverified third-party applications without doing research about its safety.
  15. Do not hesitate to report, if someone is posting offensive and abusive content on social media.
  16. Do not share or forward unverified posts/ news on social media forums. These may contain fake news or contain sensitive information which may mislead people.

Citizen Financial Cyber Frauds Reporting and Management System (For Delhi Only)

Steps for reporting of financial cyber frauds:
  1. Any victim of financial cyber fraud can dial helpline number 1930 (earlier 155260) or report the incident on National Cybercrime Reporting Portal (cybercrime.gov.in).
  2. A bank or financial intermediary or payment wallet can also report financial cyberfraud through the above-mentioned modes.
  3. The complainant must provide the following information in case incident is reportedon helpline number:
  • Mobile Number of the complainant
  • Name of Bank/Wallet/Merchant from which amount has been debited
  • Account No./Wallet Id/Merchant Id/UPI Id from which amount has been debited
  • Transaction Id
  • Transaction date
  • Debit card/Credit card number in case of fraud made by using credentials of Debit card/Credit card
  • Screen shot of transaction or any other image related to fraud, if available
  1. After reporting of complaint/incident, the complainant will get a system generated Log-in Id/acknowledgement number through SMS/Mail. Using the above Log-in Id/acknowledgement number, the complainant must complete registration of complaint on National Cybercrime Reporting Portal (www.cybercrime.gov.in) within 24 hours. This is mandatory.
  2. On receipt of complaint, the designated Police Officer will quickly examine the matter and after verification report to concerned Bank/financial intermediary or payment wallet, etc., for blocking the money involved in the financial cyber fraud.
  3. Thereafter, due action as per law will be taken in each case by Police/Bank/Payment wallet/Financial Intermediary.
  4. Use of this facility will help a victim of financial cyber fraud in retrieving the money and help police in identifying the cybercriminal(s) and take legal action as per law.

Source courtesy: www.cybercrime.gov.in

Mutual Funds Investing: Is It That Hard?

Mutual Funds Investing: Is It That Hard?

by | May 14, 2022 | Banking & Finance, resources

Mutual Funds Investing: Is It That Hard?

Do you get heavy thoughts after hearing words like mutual funds, SIP, investment, etc.? Do you start feeling that this is not your thing? In reality, this is because you have either incomplete information about these things, or whatever information you have is wrong. Despite the regular advertisements of the Association of Mutual Funds in India (AMFI), people still have many misconceptions about investing in mutual funds, which we will try to clear today.

                                                                                                                                   Subas Tiwari

Following are some of the most common misconstructions about mutual funds.

  1. You need to be an expert to invest in mutual funds

Investors often avoid mutual funds as they do not know much about it. There is a common argument, ‘I don’t understand these.’ It is a wrong argument that you need to be an expert to invest in mutual funds. The reality is that mutual funds are the best option for those who do not understand investing. In this, your money is managed by professionals and the person do not have to worry about which shares to buy and when to sell. In this, the fund manager chooses the stocks for you.

  1. How much to invest

The second myth is related to the quantum of investment. Many investors feel that they need to invest a huge amount in mutual funds to earn good returns. This is not right. You can invest Rs 500 per month through SIP. Gradually you can increase your investment. In such a situation, if you have a small amount, then do not hold back from investing.

  1. Mutual funds invest money only in stocks

Investors who do not have much knowledge of mutual funds often assume that the funds invest only in equities. If there is volatility in the equity market, it will sink their money in mutual funds. You should know that debt mutual funds account for 66% of the assets and management of mutual funds. Equity mutual funds account for only 32 per cent of the market. In such a situation, if you want higher returns and better tax benefits, but want to avoid the risk of equity mutual funds, then you should invest in debt funds.

  1. You can’t go wrong with five star rated funds

In this, past performance does not guarantee future returns. Mutual fund trackers such as Value Research and Morning star give ratings to funds and this gives investors some ideas. However, keep in mind that this rating is subject to change. A five-star fund can convert into a three-star or two-star fund, depending on its risk-adjusted performance and volatility in returns.

  1. SIP is the name of an investment product

A lot of people think that “SIP” is the name of some investment products other than mutual funds. So they say – “I want to invest in SIP”. However, SIP means a systematic investment plan, which just means a way to regularly invest only in mutual funds. In this, a pre-fixed amount is automatically deducted from your account and gets invest in mutual funds on a pre-defined date.

  1. I can’t stop SIP in between once I start it

Another myth that stops investors from entering mutual funds is that they think starting SIP for X years, is a commitment they can’t break in between and they will face some penalty if they stop their investments.

A lot of people do not want to give any PROMISE of regular payment. However, the truth is that once you start the SIP, you can anytime stop the SIP in between. So don’t worry while starting the SIP for the next 5, 10 or 30 years. The day you want to stop it, it can be stopped with just one notification!

  1. Lower NAV is cheaper than higher NAV

Most of the mutual fund’s investors think that a smaller NAV mutual fund is a better deal compared to a higher NAV mutual fund. While this may be sometimes true in case of stocks because a Rs 10 stock has the potential to grow faster than a stock with Rs 10000 stock value.

But in case of mutual funds, NAV has no significance. It’s ZERO!

Because your mutual fund’s appreciation has everything to do with the appreciation in NAV value in percentage terms and not an absolute value. I mean if you invest Rs 10 lacs in a fund with NAV of Rs 10, and if the mutual fund performs great and in the next 5 yrs it doubles in value, then the NAV will rise to Rs 20 and your fund value will rise to Rs 20 lacs.

However, if the NAV was Rs 10,000 per unit, still the effect would be the same for you. The NAV would have increased to Rs 20,000 and your value would have increased to Rs 20 lacs. No difference as such. So stop thinking that a fund is better (especially NFO’s) just because its NAV is lower.

  1. Dividend in mutual funds is better than growth option

When you choose a mutual fund to invest, you have to choose between the dividend and growth option. Now a lot of investors think that dividend option is better because they are getting “extra dividend”. However, it’s not true.

Dividends are not extra!, The NAV comes down by that margin after the dividend is paid, on top of it, if the fund is not an equity fund, a dividend distribution tax is first paid by AMC, which lowers the return of the investor. However, in the case of growth option, the money remains in the fund itself.

  1. Mutual funds means stock market

One of the most common myths is that mutual funds are highly risky because they invest in stocks. However, this is half true. Only equity mutual funds invest in stocks and are risky (in fact volatile is the right word, not risky).

There are other categories of mutual funds called debt mutual funds, which do not invest in equities. They invest in bonds, govt. securities, and other secured investments. While debt funds have their own risks and even their returns are not 100% stable, still, debt funds are highly stable when it comes to returns and often provide better tax-adjusted returns then most of the bank fixed deposits.

  1. You have to invest big amounts in mutual funds

Many small investors stay away from mutual funds and stick to recurring deposits and other products because they think that mutual funds are for big investors and one has to invest big money in it. However, you can start a monthly investment of even Rs 1,000 per month in most of the funds. If you want to invest on the onetime basis, the limit is Rs 5,000.

So someone who is just earning Rs 10,000 per month and wanted to invest 10% of his income, can also start mutual funds SIP.

  1. Mutual funds are always for long term

Mutual funds are marketed as long term investments most of the time. However, it’s not always the case. There are mutual funds called liquid mutual funds and even short term debt funds which can be used for short term investment horizon like 6 months or 2 years.

Only in case of equity mutual funds, it’s suggested that one should invest from a long term perspective to reap the maximum benefits.

  1. Mutual funds offer guaranteed returns

No, Not always. Actually never!

Mutual funds never offer a guaranteed return like a fixed deposit. This is one reason why many investors who are totally in love with “assurity” shy away from investing in mutual funds.

Various categories of mutual funds offer various return range. An equity mutual funds can offer return anywhere from -50% to 100% return in a year (just a high level estimate). However, a debt fund can also deliver a return ranging from 5% to 15%. And a liquid fund will mostly give a return in range of 6-8%

So the returns are not guaranteed, but highly probably within a range depending on its category. Also note that as the investment horizon shifts from 1 year to 10-20 years, the probability of getting a stable return within a range increases.

  1. I will lose my money if the mutual fund’s company goes bankrupt

This is common thinking, but not true. Mutual funds are highly secured in terms of structure. The way it’s designed and regulated by SEBI, it’s almost impossible for investors to lose money due to a scam or AMC going bankrupt. Your mutual fund’s units does not lie with AMC (it just takes the decision of buying and selling). Units and all the money lies with the custodian and highly secure.

  1. Past returns in mutual funds indicate future returns

Not correct. While past returns can surely tell you that the fund did very well in the past and there is some probability due to legacy that it will perform well. But it’s not written on stone.

  1. More mutual funds means diversification

Diversification is an ill-treated word, at least in mutual funds. Just because you invest in more mutual funds does not always mean that you have achieved diversification. The reason is simple. A mutual fund invests in close to 50-100 stocks. So when you invest in an equity mutual fund, your money is already well diversified across sectors, types of companies, etc. When you add another mutual fund, most of the stocks might be the same and also in the same proportion, giving you very little extra diversification.

  1. I can start SIP and forget it for long term

A lot of investors think that once they have started a SIP investment or even lump sum investment, they can just sit back and relax for the next 10-20 years. This is not suggested.

Mutual funds need constant review every year. So you should at least keep an eye on your fund performance. Do not overdo it and start looking at weekly and monthly returns, but do that in 1-2 years.

  1. SIP can be done only on a monthly basis

No, an SIP can be done even on a weekly or quarterly basis. While monthly SIP is the most suitable for all (we all get monthly income), but at times if you want to invest on a quarterly basis or weekly basis, even that can be done. However, note that it depends on a mutual fund if it gives you the facility of weekly/quarterly SIP or not. Most of them do, but at times, some mutual funds might choose to not have that option.

  1. Mutual funds investments are complicated

While investing in mutual funds is definitely not as simple as creating a fixed deposit, it’s not too complicated. You need to do a one-time documentation to start with and once it’s done, you can buy/redeem mutual funds online.

  1. I can’t add more lump sum amount in my fund where I do SIP

A lot of investors feel that if they have started a SIP in a fund XYZ, then they can’t add additional money in the same fund under the same folio. It is not true. When you invest in a fund (either SIP or one time), you get a folio number. This is like an account number. You can anytime add any amount of fund to the same folio.

  1. You need documentation every time you want to invest in mutual funds

Again a big myth. Once you are done with the first time documentation, after that every time you want to invest and redeem or switch, you can do it online. The documentation comes into picture only when you want to do changes like your email id, phone or address, etc.

  1. Mutual funds are not for retired investors

This is entirely false. There are various kind of mutual funds which are suitable for retirement needs. You can invest your hard-earned money in debt funds and keep them secure while it’s growing at a decent return. One can choose an option for a monthly dividend and get an income.

  1. I can’t invest in mutual funds because I need high liquidity

Again a myth. Mutual funds are highly liquid and you can get your money ranging from instant redemption to 3-4 days depending on the fund type. If you want very high liquidity, then you can invest money in liquid funds, from where you can redeem in 24 hours.

  1. I can’t skip an SIP payment once started

A lot of people are worried about what will happen if they skip the SIP in a particular month when they are low on funds?

If your bank account does not have sufficient money for a month, then on the SIP date the SIP will not get processed, but from next month it will go fine again. Mutual funds companies does not charge any fine or penalty for this, but your bank can levy a small charge for this like Rs 200/300.

I think it’s good, because that way you will be disciplined enough to make sure that your SIP’s go on time, but also does not hurt you too badly in case of emergency.

  1. TDS is applicable when mutual funds are sold and redeemed

Mutual funds are not like fixed deposits or recurring deposits. When you sell your mutual funds, there is no TDS which is deducted. You get the full amount in your bank account and then you need to figure out the tax amount and pay it later. However there is no exception to this. In the case of NRIs, if they redeem their debt funds, then TDS is applicable.

  1. My money will be locked in mutual funds like other products

Many investors think that in mutual funds their money is locked for a specific period. In case of mutual funds, most of the funds are open-ended funds, which means that you can invest any time and redeem anytime.

There is no lock-in except in ELSS funds (which comes under 80C) and close-ended funds (which specifically tell you the duration for lock-in).

  1. I can’t switch from one mutual fund to another fund

Many people do not know that it’s possible to move from one fund to another fund across the same fund house. You don’t need to sell the fund, get the money in your account and then again invest in another fund of the same fund house.

  1. Mutual funds of bigger and trusted brands are always better

Do you know that LIC also has mutual funds business?

However, LIC mutual funds are one of the worst-performing funds across the whole MF industry. LIC mutual funds are not the same as LIC insurance.

In the same way, SBI mutual funds should not be confused with SBI bank. A lot of first-time investors in mutual funds investors want to go with trusted brands like LIC, SBI, or HDFC.

  1. I can’t partially withdraw from mutual funds

Yes, you can. Mutual funds can be redeemed in parts. You just have to choose the number of units you want to redeem or the amount you want to redeem (it will calculate the units required). So that way, it’s a great product. Because in case of deposits it’s either the full amount or none.

Source courtesy: Jago Investor

Challenges Faced by Legal Professionals

Challenges Faced by Legal Professionals

by | May 14, 2022 | Legal

Challenges Faced by Legal Professionals

Trust and confidence are two very important factors for a good relationship between a client and their lawyer. However, in many cases, we find the client in a shaky state of mind even after handing over the case to an advocate. The reason behind this situation is they rely too much upon internet material which is easily accessible to everyone. At the touch of a screen, data with all information is served to them instantly. Such   ‘internet addicted clients’ are becoming a challenge to legal professionals. Their half-baked knowledge damages the relationship of trust and confidence between the professional and the client.

                                                                                                      Dr Prem Lata

The material available on the internet is not authentic all the time or tested through established parameters and standard. For example, some literature regarding legal or medical theory is put on the internet by a person expressing his view point which is yet in an experimental stage but the author strongly believes his views. Until and unless his views undergo some tests and becomes established norms in the particular field, it is yet a view only. Nonetheless, a person searching the internet for everything does not bother to choose original website for the subject and gets copied information through search engines which is not direct information. This literature if provided as an expert opinion in a medical or legal case, is not entertained by the courts but the clients press for the same before the advocate while giving his case to the professional.

 Some other challenges faced by legal professionals are:

  1. Questions to test the advocate

The questions for information fall within the right of the client, which are bound to be answered in order to satisfy the client. At times, questions posed with half-baked knowledge acquired from internet searches irritate the advocate. The client, instead of explaining the facts and the relief required, focus more on testing the capabilities of the lawyer.

  1. Irrelevant judgments to the case

During the consultation, client pulls out copies of the judgments of the Hon’ble Supreme Court brought by him from his file and requests the advocate to look into it and ask to deal his case from the angle of the judgments pointed out by him. Explaining the irrelevance and inapplicability of the judgments brought by a client is a big deal for advocates and it often happen that he does not take much interest in taking the brief from such clients.

  1. Pleadings suggested to be present in their way

Clients wish the pleadings to be presented in the way they want it and without asking the consent of the advocate, virtually rewrite the entire pleadings. In other words, these are clients who want to use the services of advocates like a post office. Pleadings with unnecessary and scandalous attacks on the opposing parties apart from extracts of irrelevant judgments downloaded from the internet does not attract good results in the court for clients.

  1. Comparison with other cases

Due to information provided by every court online, litigants make comparison with others cases. The tricky part of litigants is that they get information right from the stage of filing till the stage of disposal of not just their case, but every other case filed in a court. They take notice of any case filed after their case, getting disposed of earlier, they question the proficiency of their advocate. They can never understand the practical nitty-gritty of procedures and the functioning of courts and any explanation given to them is interpreted as a lame excuse. Such clients keep hopping from one advocate to another, and create problems by complaining about previous advocate, relying upon online information, totally unaware of its applicability and relevance to their case.

MP roundtable discussion with MPs on the Importance of Front of Pack Warning Labels to control NCDs

MP roundtable discussion with MPs on the Importance of Front of Pack Warning Labels to control NCDs

by | May 8, 2022 | fopl event

MP roundtable discussion with MPs on the Importance of Front of Pack Warning Labels to control NCDs

Consumer VOICE organized a round table discussion with Hon’ble Members of Parliament and senior doctors and consumer activists on 30th March, 2022 at Constitution Club of India, New Delhi on ‘The Importance of Front of Pack Warning Labels to control NCDs’. 
The members were from both Rajya Sabha and Lok Sabha. The meetings itself were fruitful as we were able to sensitize the parliamentarians on the subject which is relatively new and distributed IEC materials and research papers for a background.

 MPs Present in the Discussion

  • Dr Vikas Mahatme, Rajya Sabha
  • Shri Pradeep Gandhi, Ex MP, Lok Sabha
  • Shri P. Bhattacharya, MP, Rajya Sabha

Messages by the MPs

Dr Vikas Mahatme, Rajya Sabha MP present at the occasion said that “One of the possible ways of making a choice between healthy and unhealthy foods is to have front of pack warning labels on food packets, so that consumers are able to identify foods that are High in Salt sugar and Fats. He also stressed that FOPL will work best when it is made mandatory.”

Shri Pradeep Gandhi, Ex MP, Lok Sabha while talking on generating awareness on the health harms of unhealthy packaged foods stresses that “implementation of FOPL which is backed by scientific evidence, should be discussed in the Parliament so that timely regulation of front of pack labels can help in saving hundreds of lives.”

Speaking on the same lines, Shri P. Bhattacharya, MP, Rajya Sabha, agrees that “Front of pack warning labels are very important for preventing non-communicable diseases in India. Consumption of unhealthy packaged foods can be controlled by bringing in the correct science based regulations.”

Messages by Doctors

Dr Umesh Kapil President of the Epidemiological Foundation of India, said that

“FOPL is a very important intervention to educate the masses on the healthy and

unhealthy foods. He also said that “Unfortunately, the industries want very high

cut-offs for their products so that they can make their products tastier, thereby

compromising on the healthiness of the product.”

Prof Harshpal Singh Sachdev, Senior Consultant of Sitaram Bhartia Institute of Science and Research said that “If we do not want to give our future generation a lifelong diseases requiring medicines, so we have to make efforts to curb unhealthy consumption of foods. The process should begin from childhood and the best way to do that is to provide warning labels like we have on cigarette packs. A warning label should help a child to discern that this is bad for health.  It’s high time the FSSAI acts on this otherwise we will have problem and agony for our future generation.”

Messages by Consumer Activists

Dr. Arun Gupta, National Convener BPNI said that FOPL guidelines/rules in the right direction has the potential to encourage reformulation of the food products and could save people from big food industry’s aggressive marketing. He opined that this FOPL regulation has to be perfect in terms of the label design, Nutritional Profile Model and must be mandatory. Only then it will impact the NCD control measures.

Mr Ashim Sanyal, CEO, Consumer VOICE, said that “FOPL design cannot be left at the whims and fancies of the industry which is only focusing on their profits. A wrong and voluntary label design will stand in the way of public health safety which is already reeling under great pressure especially after COVID.”

Follow-up action

A letter was drafted on behalf of the MPs by Consumer Rights organisations and the same was mailed to DR Vikas Mahatme to be forwarded to the Hon’ble Prime Minister of India. The letter briefly points to the need of Warning labels on packaged foods that are High in Salt, Sugar and Fats. It also raises the concern that FSSAI is considering “Health Star Rating” (HSR) as a preferred FOPL among other options in draft regulation which it is not supported by science and cannot identify the unhealthy nutrient (salt/sugar/fat).

Media Follow-up

Video bytes were given by the MPs and the doctors on the importance of FOPL to curb non-communicable diseases or NCDS which are being used in social media.

Can two degrees obtained simultaneously be considered for employment purposes

Can two degrees obtained simultaneously be considered for employment purposes

by | May 7, 2022 | Legal

Can two degrees obtained simultaneously be considered for employment purposes

A bench comprising Justices K.M. Joseph and Hrishikesh Roy entertained an appeal assailing the order of the Madhya Pradesh High Court (Sushil Kumar Patel Etc. v. State of Madhya Pradesh And Ors. Etc.), which dismissed the petitioners’ plea on the ground that pursuing Master’s and Bachelor of Education (B.Ed.) simultaneously is not permissible as it would affect the validity of the degree and impact their appointment as teachers. The basic issue of the case was whether two degrees obtained simultaneously, during the same academic year, can be considered for employment purposes.

 Facts of the case

An advertisement was issued by the Professional Examination Board, Madhya Pradesh in September, 2018 for recruitment of teachers in High Schools. The original petitioner, in the main matter, had filled the application form for Biology. She completed her M.Sc (Zoology) through an Open Distance Learning Programme during September-October 2008 to September-October, 2010. She was enrolled as a regular student in B.Ed. Course in 2009 and appeared for examination in 2010. Qualification Required – As per the M.P. School Education Service (Teaching Cadre) Service Conditions and Recruitment Rules, 2018 (“2018 Rules”), the educational qualification required to be recruited as a teacher was Master’s Degree in relevant subjects and B.Ed. or its equivalent.
According to the M.P. School Education Service (Teaching Cadre) Service Conditions and Recruitment Rules, 2018 (“2018 Rules”), the educational requirements for being hired as a teacher were a Master’s Degree in relevant fields and a B.Ed. or its equivalent. On June 23, 2020, an order was issued stating that a candidate who holds two degrees in the same academic year will be disqualified. The petitioners challenged this ruling on the following grounds: it was not notified in accordance with Rule 9(4) of the 2018 Rules, which requires disqualification to be notified by the Government from time to time and made applicable to the candidates.

High Court order

An order was issued on 23.06.2020, that a candidate who possesses two degrees in one academic year, will be disqualified. The High Court held
  • that for a degree to be valid it has to fulfil the terms, conditions and guidelines issued by the University Grants Commission (“UGC”), which is the regulatory Authority. The UGC videnotice dated 15.01.2016, had stated that they do not endorse the idea of allowing students to pursue two Degrees simultaneously. Therefore, the Court held that the two degrees so obtained by the petitioners cannot be said to be valid.

 Order challenged

This order was challenged by the petitioners on the following grounds –
  1. The 2018 Rules does not provide any such disqualification. It was not notified in terms of Rule 9(4) of the 2018 Rules, disqualification was to be notified by the Government from time to time which is not done
  2. The petitioner contended that the reasoning provided by the High Court that UGC does not recognise such degrees is not correct as the UGC had taken a decision to accept the recommendation of an Expert Committee which suggests otherwise. Moreover, he asserted that similarly situated candidates with similar degrees have already been given appointments.
  3. The petitioners had undertaken one course as a regular degree and the other through an Open Distance Learning Programme.
  4. It violates Article 16 and 19(1)(g) of the Constitution of India.
  5. 2018 Rules cannot be bypassed by executive instructions.

Law under consideration are-

  • Rules 2018
  • UGC Notice 15.1.2016

 UGC Efforts –

  • One meeting on 28th Dec 2012 ,proposed to make two degrees permissible simultaneously ,one regular another on line /correspondence
  • No reply or comment on it from universities who were sent minutes for comments
  • Order by UGC dated15thJan 2016- to follow Regulations  2003
  • Regulation 2003 talks of under admission and award head

 Various clarifications by Open Indira Gandhi University

By Dr Prem Lata Legal Head, VOICE
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