'Right to Repair': Soon, consumers & third-party vendors may fix products

Committee identifies farming equipment, cell phones, consumer durables among sectors for policy

The government will make it mandatory for car, cell phone and other consumer goods companies to share product details so that consumers can make repair themselves or employ third parties.

The Department of Consumer Affairs, in a statement on Thursday, said it has set up a committee chaired by Nidhi Khare, an additional secretary, to develop a framework on 'Right to Repair'. The committee first met on Wednesday to identify sectors for the right.

The sectors identified include farming equipment, mobile phones/ tablets, consumer durables, and automobiles/automobile equipment. According to the 'Right to Repair' concept, customers must own a product