Retail package declarations do not apply to industrial-use goods sold through a stockist to an industrial consumer.

Rule 6 of the Standards of Weights and Measures (Packaged Commodities) Rules, 1977 is confined to packages intended for retail sale to the ultimate consumer and does not extend to industrial or institutional consumer packages. Reading Rule 2(p), Rule 2-A and the earlier Rule 34(a) harmoniously, the consumer-protection scheme applies to ordinary retail consumers, not to specialised goods sold for industrial use. A manufacturer selling industrial packaged goods through a stockist to an industrial consumer is therefore outside the retail-package regime, and declarations under Rule 6 are not required. On that footing, notices demanding compliance were without authority.

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Issues: Whether Rule 6 of the Standards of Weights and Measures (Packaged Commodities) Rules, 1977 applies to a manufacturer who sells industrial packaged goods through a stockist to an industrial consumer.

Analysis: The object of the Standards of Weights and Measures Act, 1976 and the Packaged Commodities Rules is consumer protection in respect of commodities commonly used by ordinary consumers. Rule 6 prescribes declarations on packages intended for retail sale. Rule 2(p) defines "retail package" as a package intended for retail sale to the ultimate consumer, but the proviso excludes industrial and institutional consumers. Rule 2-A excludes from Chapter II packages meant for industrial or institutional consumers, and the earlier Rule 34(a) also reflected that industrial-use packages were outside the retail-package regime. Reading these provisions harmoniously and in light of legislative intent, the protection is confined to individual consumers and not to industrial or institutional consumers purchasing specialized goods for industrial use. The expression used in the proviso to Rule 2(p) cannot be given the narrower meaning used in the explanation to Rule 2-A so as to force industrial-use packages sold through stockists into the retail-sale framework.

Conclusion: Rule 6 does not apply to a manufacturer selling packaged goods meant for industrial use to an industrial consumer through a stockist, and the impugned notices were without authority.

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