The Central Consumer Protection Authority (CCPA) on Saturday said it has directed Cloudtail to recall 1,033 units of pressure cookers that did not meet quality norms and also reimburse the price of these cookers to consumers. It also directed Cloudtail to pay a penalty of ₹1 lakh for selling pressure cookers in violation of the mandatory standards prescribed under the QCO.
CCPA has initiated suo-motu action against various e-commerce platforms for selling domestic pressure cookers which did not meet the standards. “‘The pressure cooker was being offered for sale to consumers on Amazon e-commerce platform,” the Authority noted.
In its reply, Cloudtail stated that after the Quality Control Order(QCO) came into force, it had suspended the import of the pressure cookers.
“It was observed by CCPA that though import was suspended, the company had not stopped the sale of such pressure cookers to consumers. This submission evidently indicated that despite being aware of the QCO, the company was still selling such pressure cookers to consumers at large. A total of 1,033 units of pressure cookers not conforming to mandatory standards were sold by Cloudtail through Amazon after notification of the QCO,” the Authority added.
Cause for concern
Cloudtail was formerly a joint venture between Amazon and Catamaran Ventures and used to be the biggest seller on the e-commerce platform but ceased operations in May.
Meanwhile, CCPA said that violation of standards mandated by the QCOs not only endangers public safety, but can make consumers vulnerable to severe injuries including loss of life. “This is a critical cause for concern, especially in the case of the domestic pressure cooker, which is a household good, present in most homes in the immediate vicinity of family members,” it added.
CCPA has also been issuing safety notices to caution consumers against buying goods which do not hold valid ISI Mark and which violate compulsory BIS standards. “While the first Safety Notice was issued with regard to helmets, pressure cookers and cooking gas cylinders, the second Safety Notice was issued with regard to household goods including electric immersion water heaters, sewing machines, microwave ovens, domestic gas stoves with LPG, etc.,” the statement added.