Role of media in creating consumer awareness in rural India

Every individual is a consumer. Consumer rights and welfare are now an integral part of the life of an individual and we all have made use of them at some point in our daily routine. The Consumer Protection Act (1986) offers protection against defective goods, deficient services, unfair trade practices and consumer‘s exploitation. Every year 15th March is observed as "World Consumer Rights Day". Media in all its form, print or electronic, is a mirror of the time and society we live in. It connects us to the world and the world to us. Media plays a pivotal role in setting up good relation between traders and buyers. Rural markets constitute an important segment of overall economy. Rural products of India (handicraft items, embroidery, food products, agro based products etc.) are unique and innovative. Sustainable market linkages are necessary for promoting such products. Proper and adequate media coverage is required for this. Gone are the days when a rural consumer had to go to a nearby town or city to buy a branded product. The growing power of the rural consumer is forcing big companies to flock to rural markets. To accelerate consumer awareness efforts should be made such as:

To publish brochures, journals and monographs

To arrange conferences, seminars and workshops

In recent time the media has reached the nook and corners of the society and advertisements like ‘Jago Grahak Jago’ have become a household name only because of the media. A consumer can call National Consumer Helpline to seek information, advice for his queries, complaints and guidance. More the consumers aware, more they will be protected.

The present paper discusses the prospects and problems of rural marketing and role of media in creating awareness among rural consumers. The paper contains mainly four separate sections. While section one deals with present scenario of rural market; section two concentrates on importance of consumer protection and the measures and initiatives that have taken so far by Govt. of India. Section three is discussed about role of media in creating consumer awareness. The final section offers some suggestive measures for improvement of the present loopholes and gaps of role of media in rural marketing in India by identifying areas where immediate intervention is necessary to attain the basic objective of rural development.