The Department of Consumer Affairs, Government of India, together with the Government of Chhattisgarh, organised a two-day regional workshop on strengthening consumer protection mechanisms in Raipur on 21 and 22 February 2026. The event reiterated the Department's commitment to technology adoption, institutional capacity building and inter-state collaboration to enhance consumer justice delivery. Senior officials and judicial members from national, state and district consumer commissions attended to share best practices and review operational challenges.

The workshop was inaugurated by the Minister for Food, Civil Supplies and Consumer Affairs of Chhattisgarh and included addresses by the Secretary of the Department of Consumer Affairs, National Consumer Disputes Redressal Commission members and state commission presidents. The Secretary highlighted the role of the National Consumer Helpline (NCH) as an effective pre-litigation platform and reported that more than Rs 520 million (Rs 520 mn) were refunded to consumers from 25 April 2025 to 31 January 2025 across 31 sectors. She also underlined the implementation of the e-Jagriti platform for end-to-end digital case management and the increasing use of Artificial Intelligence (AI) for analytics and detection of unfair trade practices.

Speakers emphasised the need for e-filing, e-hearings and measures to minimise adjournments and strengthen execution of orders to ensure speedy and accessible redressal. The workshop included six thematic technical sessions covering e-Jagriti and AI tools, complaint admission procedures, digital and e-commerce challenges including dark patterns, disposal of execution applications, proposed amendments to the Consumer Protection Act, 2019, and procedural uniformity across commissions. A parallel session addressed legal metrology and related regulatory reforms.

Participants from Bihar, Chhattisgarh, Goa, Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Odisha and Jharkhand engaged in deliberations to develop actionable strategies to reduce pendency and improve institutional effectiveness. The Department of Consumer Affairs reiterated ongoing support to states for building an efficient, technology-driven consumer justice system and noted that regional workshops since June 2022 have been used to monitor outcomes and disseminate best practices. Officials concluded that strengthened pre-litigation mechanisms, digital case management and capacity building would together deliver faster, consumer-friendly justice.