Essential commodities

1. ESSENTIAL COMMODITIES
DHANYA N. MENON
ADVOCATE
E mail: [email protected] ; Website: www. altacit.com

2. WHAT ARE ESSENTIAL COMMODITIES?
Those declared by the Central Government as EC
The Essential Commodities Act, 1955
Implemented by the State Governments and Union
Territories – Delegated Powers under the Act.

3. LIST OF ESSENTIAL COMMODITIES
At present: Only 7 broad categories
•Drugs;
•Fertilizer, inorganic, organic or mixed;
•Foodstuffs, including edible oilseeds and oils;
•Hank yarn made wholly from cotton;
•Petroleum and petroleum products;
•Raw jute and jute textile;
•Seeds:
(i) seeds of food-crops and seeds of fruits and vegetables;
(ii) seeds of cattle fodder; and
(iii) jute seeds. Recently cotton seed was also included in the
list

4. ESSENTIAL COMMODITIES ACT, 1955
•To ensure the easy availability of essential
commodities to consumers;
•To protect consumers from exploitation by
unscrupulous traders;
•For the regulation and control of production,
distribution and pricing of commodities which are d
eclared as essential for –
maintaining or increasing supplies;
securing their equitable distribution; and
securing availability at fair prices.

5. ACT – CHECKING PRICE HIKE
•State and UT administrations
•Impose stock or turnover limits for various
commodities
• Penalize those who hold in excess of the limit.
•Stock limits have been imposed in several states for
pulses, edible oil, edible oilseeds, rice, paddy and
sugar.

6. POWERS UNDER THE ACT
•Section 3 – Power of Central Government
•Regulate or prohibit the production, supply and
distribution, trade and commerce of any essential
commodity
•regulate by licenses, permits or otherwise:
the production or manufacture of any essential
commodity
storage, transport, distribution, disposal, acquisition,
consumption
•Cultivate food crops on any waste land
•prohibit the withholding from sale of any essential
commodity ordinarily kept for sale

7. CONFISCATION OF ESSENTIAL COMMODITY
•ECs seized u/s. 3 shall be produced before the District
Collector
•If the Collector is satisfied that there has been a
contravention of the order may order confiscation of-
(a) the essential commodity so seized;
(b) any package, covering or receptacle in which such essential
commodity is found; and
(c) any animal, vehicle, vessel or other conveyance used in
carrying such essential commodity;
•the person from whom it is seized is given a show
cause notice informing the grounds of confiscation
•Any person aggrieved may, within one month of such
order, appeal to the State Government.

8. PENALTIES: SECTION 7
If any person contravenes any order made under Sec 3:
•imprisonment for a term which may extend from
three months to seven years and shall also be liable
to fine
•any property in respect of which the order has been
contravened shall be forfeited to the Government.
•any packing, covering or receptacle in which the
property is found and any animal, vehicle or other
conveyance used in carrying the property shall, if the
court so orders, be forfeited to the Government.

9. ACCUSED PERSON
•Any person who attempts to contravene or abets a
contravention of any order made u/S. 3
•Any person who furnish false statement or wrong
information u/S. 3
•In case if the contravention is by the Company: every
person who, at the time the contravention was
committed was in charge of and was responsible to
the company for the conduct of the business of the
company as well as company

10. OFFENCES
•All offences are cognizable and non- bailable
•No court shall take cognizance of any offence
punishable under this Act except on a report in writing
of the facts constituting such offence made by a public
servant or any person aggrieved or any recognized
consumer association
•all offences shall be trialed only by the Special Court
constituted for the area
•All trial should be summary trials
•Appeal lie to the High Court

11. JAFFER v. THE STATE OF KERALA
(MARCH, 2010)
Cognizance for the offence u/Secs 3 and 7 of EC Act -
petitioner was found manufacturing engine oil without
license using chemicals for storing and sale-contention
declared engine oil has not declared as an essential
commodity and therefore petitioner cannot be
prosecuted for the offence u/Secs 3 and 7 of EC Act.

Section 3 empowers to control production, supply,
distribution etc. of essential commodities.
The prosecution quashed.

12. STATE (DELHI ADMINISTRATION) v. VIJAY
CHAUDHARI (NOVEMBER 2006)
Cognizance u/S 7 of the EC Act.
Respondent-proprietor of fair price shop-raid by food
department-discrepancies in stocks-prosecuted-trial
court acquitted-Appeal.
Since no evidence to prove that the respondent was
the license holder of the fair price shop he cannot be
convicted.
Acquittal sustained- Appeal dismissed.

13. SAT PAL GUPTA & ANR. v. STATE OF
HARYANA & ANR.
Petition challenging the validity of clause 3 of Haryana Rice
Bran (Distribution and Price)Control Order 1967 regulating the
dealings on rice bran - Meaning of “Food Stuff”-Rice bran used
to feed poultry and cattle-Whether essential commodity
within the meaning of the Act.
Section 2(a)(i) of the EC Act 1955 defines an "essential
commodity" to mean "cattle fodder including oilcakes and
other concentrates" and by sub-clause (v) an “essential
commodity” means "food stuffs, including edible oilseeds and
oils.“- thus Rice bran being a "foodstuff" within the meaning of
section 2(a) (v) of the Act, it is an essential commodity.
Petition Dismissed.