With revised rates on products set to be implemented from September 22, the Centre has created a dedicated category on the National Consumer Helpline’s INGRAM portal for the registration of complaints relating to revised GST rates, failure of businesses to implement changed rates and the redressal of such grievances.
The GST Council had announced a reduction in the number of tax slabs in the country’s Goods and Services Tax (GST) structure and reduced tax rates on various goods and services with effect from September 22.
Accordingly, the Department of Consumer Affairs has taken steps to align the National Consumer Helpline (NCH) with the 'Next-Gen GST Reforms 2025' approved during the 56th meeting of the GST Council, said an official statement on Saturday.
"To address the expected consumer queries and complaints on NCH following the implementation of revised GST charges, rates and exemptions effective from September 22, a dedicated category has been enabled on the INGRAM (Integrated Grievance Redressal Mechanism) portal," it added.
This category features major sub-categories including automobiles, banking, consumer durables, e-commerce, FMCG and others wherein GST related complaints will be registered.
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The move is expected to strengthen GST compliance and promote a participatory governance model by empowering consumers to become active stakeholders in fair market practices.
An inaugural training session by the Central Board of Indirect Taxes & Customs (CBIC) officials was also conducted on September 11 to equip NCH counsellors to handle GST-related queries and grievances effectively.
On September 17, a stakeholder consultation meeting was convened under the chairpersonship of the Consumer Affairs Secretary, wherein the department asked them to pass on the benefits of the GST rate reductions on specified goods and services to consumers.
The meeting saw participation from leading e-commerce platforms, representatives of industry associations and consumer durables companies.
"The helpline will also share data and insights generated from consumer complaints under this sector with concerned companies, CBIC and other concerned authorities to enable timely action under relevant laws," the statement further said.
The National Consumer Helpline (www.consumerhelpline.gov.in) has emerged as a single point of access for consumers across the country to register grievances at the pre-litigation stage.
For the ease of complainants, complaints can be lodged in 17 languages, namely Hindi, English, Kashmiri, Punjabi, Nepali, Gujarati, Marathi, Kannada, Telugu, Tamil, Malayalam, Maithili, Santhali, Bengali, Odia, Assamese, and Manipuri, via toll-free number 1915 or through the Integrated Grievance Redressal Mechanism (INGRAM). Each complaint is assigned a unique docket number for transparent tracking and resolution.
This omni-channel IT-enabled platform also supports multiple registration modes including WhatsApp, SMS, e-mail, NCH app, web portal and Umang app so as to provide convenience and flexibility to consumers.
The number of calls received by NCH has jumped more than ten-fold from 12,553 in December 2015 to 1,55,138 in December 2024, says government data.
Similarly, the average number of complaints registered per month has surged to 1,70,585 in 2025 from 37,062 in 2017.
Nearly 65 per cent of grievances on the helpline are registered through online and digital channels.
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