PDS Effect: Rice quality fears lead to harassment of MKG’s grocers

Dimapur, August 9: The Mokokchung Chamber of Commerce & Industries (MCCI) has taken strong note that grocers in Mokokchung town were being ‘harassed and exploited by abusive individuals on flimsy grounds almost on a daily basis.’
The MCCI issued a press release on Tuesday implying that the harassment of grocers, especially dealers of food grains and rice, was associated with ‘poor quality rice.’
The MCCI stated that it was shocked by ‘small time innocent grocers’ in Mokokchung town being “harassed and exploited by abusive individuals on flimsy grounds almost on a daily basis, often taking matters beyond reasonable bounds.”
Of late, the press release stated, “The general perception of the populace seems to be that every grocer in Mokokchung town is selling ‘adulterated rice’,” which the organization said was a “gross misjudgement (sic) of the situation.”
The grocers are being ‘accused, without any evidence of adulterating rice with PDS rice and are often being abused and victimized for no fault of theirs at all,’ the MCCI stated. The organization noted the grievances of the grocers and listed out a number of business imperatives to smoothen the buyer-seller exchange (given verbatim):
• That, all customers are our esteemed guests and we are committed to best serve the people but we shall take our own stand when our rights are being violated or abused.
• That, anybody accusing a trader of selling “adulterated rice” without any evidence may note that he or she can also be taken to task for slander and defamation.
• That, there are natural causes like precipitation and humidity that may deteriorate the quality of rice or any product for that matter but that, however, does not mean that traders are “adulterating” the rice.
• That, grocers selling rice in Mokokchung town are neither the producers nor manufacturers of rice but mere traders buying from dealers and agencies and reselling them to customers. Therefore, packaging and manufacturing defects, if any, should not be misconstrued as “adulterated rice.”
• That, as is practised in Mokokchung, rice buyers are given absolute liberty to choose and pick any bag of their choicein any grocery. When a buyer is satisfied with the product of his choice and makes purchase, the transaction ends there.
“The MCCI and the grocery traders selling rice have resolved that rice bags once purchased by a buyer after being satisfied with the quality of the product in the first place shall not be accepted back if returned by the buyer under any circumstances whatsoever,” the MCCI stated.
While assuring respect to customers and their consumer rights, the MCCI also said it “will not shy away from safeguarding our rights either.”
“Further, MCCI reminds all in concern that we stand for ethical business practices in the service of the people. As such, any trader found indulging in unethical and illegal business practices prohibited by law shall be dealt with sternly,” the statement added.