By IANS
Chandigarh : A consumer court here has slapped a fine of Rs.500,000 on Punjab’s biggest milk supplier, Milkfed, for selling an underweight milk pouch to one of its customers four years ago.
The company sells milk under its brand name Verka,
The Union Territory (UT) state consumer disputes redressal commission here has slapped the fine on Milkfed for supplying the underweight milk pouch to Sector 29-based consumer Rajinder K. Singla.
The sealed 500 ml pouch contained only 360 ml of milk. Singla had purchased the pouch in October 2003.
Singla dragged the milk company to court and sought damages for unfair trade practices.
Consumer commission chairman K.C. Gupta imposed the penalty of Rs.500,000 on Milkfed, saying that the milk producer should be heavily penalised for cheating the consumer.
Singla, though, will get only Rs.50,000 of the total compensation awarded. The remaining amount will be deposited with the UT state legal aid authority for helping other litigants.
Singla alleged that he complained about the underweight milk pouch to the company officials, but they did not cooperate with him.
Milkfed officials contended before the commission that milk pouches were being filled by automatic machines and there was no question of tampering with individual pouches or supplying underweight ones.