Competition Commission of India (CCI)

Competition Commission of India (CCI)

#GS-02 Governance #GS-03 Economy

For Prelims:

About Competition Commission of India (CCI):

  • The CCI is a statutory body which acts as the competition regulator in India and is responsible for enforcing the Competition Act, of 2002.
  • The Commission was established in 2003, although it became fully functional only by 2009.
  • The Monopolies and Restrictive Trade Practices Act, 1969 (MRTP Act) was repealed and replaced by the Competition Act, 2002, on the recommendations of the Raghavan committee.
The objectives of the Commission are:
  1. To prevent practices that harm the competition.
  2. To promote and sustain competition in markets.
  3. To protect the interests of consumers.
  4. To ensure freedom of trade.
  • The Commission is also required to give an opinion on competition issues on a reference from a statutory authority established under any law, undertake competition advocacy, create public awareness and impart training on competition issues.
  • The Commission consists of one Chairperson and six Members who shall be appointed by the Central Government.

The Chairperson and every other Member shall be a person of ability, integrity, and standing and who:

  • has been, or is qualified to be a judge of a High Court, or,
  • has special knowledge of, and professional experience of not less than fifteen years in international trade, economics, business, commerce, law, finance, accountancy, management, industry, public affairs, administration, or in any other matter which, in the opinion of the Central Government, may be useful to the Commission.

The commission is a quasi-judicial body which gives opinions to statutory authorities and also deals with other cases. The Chairperson and other Members shall be whole-time Members.

About The Competition Act, 2002.

  • The Competition Act, 2002 was enacted to repeal the Monopolies and Restrictive Trade Practices Act, 1969 (MRTP Act).
  • The creation of the act was under the recommendation of the Raghavan committee.
The Act prohibits:
  • anti-competitive agreements
  • abuse of dominant position by enterprises
  • regulates combinations (acquisition, acquiring of control, and M&A)

as these could cause or are likely to cause an appreciable adverse effect on competition within India.