NCH now has over 1000 convergence partners

Nearly 1000 companies have partnered with the National Consumer Helpline (NCH) under its Convergence Programme to expedite grievance resolution, Department of Consumer Affairs (DoCA) said in a statement. DoCA said it is also set to meet win with non-convergence companies that have received the highest number of grievances during FY24.

The number of convergence partners has steadily increased from 263 companies in 2017 to 1009 companies as of now, it added, 

The companies that have come onboard recently span major sectors, including e-commerce, travel and tourism, private education, FMCG, consumer durables, electronic products, retail outlets, automobiles, DTH & cable services, and banking. 

DoCA said that the non-convergent companies against who its has received highest number of grievances include Delhivery Ltd, Electronicscomp.com, Domino’s Pizza, Haier Appliances India Pvt. Ltd, FirstCry.com, Thomson India, Mahindra & Mahindra, Rapido, Orient Electric Ltd, and Symphony Ltd. 

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“A meeting with these companies is scheduled for next week, to discuss and address the ongoing grievances and to bring them onboard as convergence partner,” it added. 

The number of calls received by NCH has grown nearly tenfold, from 14,795 calls in January 2015 to 1,41,817 calls in January 2024, the statement added. Also, the average number of complaints registered per month has surged from 37,062 in 2017 to 1,12,468 in 2024.

NCH is also in the process of introducing AI-based Speech Recognition, a Translation System, and a Multilingual Chatbot as part of the NCH 2.0 initiative.

DoCA has revamped the National Consumer Helpline (NCH), making it the central point of access for consumers across India to seek grievance redressal at the pre-litigation stage. The helpline is available in 17 languages, including Hindi, English, Kashmiri, Punjabi, Nepali, Gujarati, Marathi, Kannada, Telugu, Tamil, Malayalam, Maithili, Santhali, Bengali, Odia, Assamese, and Manipuri, allowing consumers from all regions to register their grievances via the toll-free number 1915.