Traders: Not forcing consumers to share mobile numbers

Ranchi: The retailers of the state capital on Thursday said they are not forcing customers to provide their phone numbers while paying at the stores.Less than a week after the department of consumer affairs urged all trade and commerce bodies in the country to ensure consumers are not forced to share their mobile numbers while making payments, the TOI, on Thursday, took stock of the situation across prominent retail stores in Ranchi.Amiya Panda, the administrator of Shoppers' Stop in Ranchi's Nucleus Mall, said, "Phone numbers are collected only from those who sign up for availing membership cards.”Prominent retail chains said phone numbers of consumers are obtained only to inform them of new offers, and schemes. "We send out messages to our customers on a weekly basis about new offers. Those who do not wish to share numbers are not forced," Nitesh Kumar, district manager of the pizza chain Domino's said.But, some consumers are in favour of sharing phone numbers at retail stores. "Phone numbers come in handy for exchanging products in case we misplace or forget to bring the bill," Vidisha Singh who came shopping at a mall in Mahatma Gandhi Road, said.Even though the consumer department flagged several complaints raised by customers across UP, Jammu, Kerala and Odisha, the Federation of Jharkhand Chamber of Commerce and Industries (FJCCI) said it has received no such complaints from the state."We are against forcefully obtaining phone numbers of consumers. If anyone undergoes such experience, they must inform us immediately," FJCCI president Kishore Mantri said.