RIGHT TO REPAIR PORTAL (Syllabus: GS Paper 3 – Economy)

Context: The Centre has urged automobile companies to join the unified Right to Repair Portal India, aiming to empower consumers with easier access to repair services and information.

Right to Repair Portal

• About: It manufacturers would share the manual of product details with customers so that they could either repair by self or by third parties, rather than depend on original manufacturers.
• Initial Coverage: Initially, mobile phones, electronics, consumer durables, automobiles, and farming equipment would be covered.
• Launched by: Department of Consumer Affairs
• Objective: To provide consumers with an easy access to information for repairing their products and enabling them to reuse it.

Right to Repair 

• About: It refers to government legislation that aims to allow consumers the ability to repair and modify their own consumer electronic devices, instead of being restricted to the manufacturer’s services.
• Ownership Rights: When customers buy a product, they should completely own it, including the ability to repair and modify it easily and at a reasonable cost, without being dependent on manufacturers for repairs.
• Historical Origin: The concept began in the USA with the Motor Vehicle Owners' Right to Repair Act of 2012, which required manufacturers to provide necessary documents and information to allow anyone to repair their vehicles.
• Objective: The law aims to harmonize trade between Original Equipment Manufacturers (OEMs) and third-party buyers and sellers, creating new jobs in the process.
• Global Adoption: US, UK, and European Union.