The jurisdiction of consumer commissions is determined solely by the value of consideration paid, not potential claims or compensation.

1. The present Complaint has been filed by M/s Vetrivel Explosives Pvt. Ltd., seeking the following reliefs:
"(a) That this Hon' ble Commission be pleased to hold the Opposite Party guilty of deficiency in service, with further directions to the said Opposite Party to rectify the defect in its services with further directions to the Opposite Party to compensate the Complainant with an amount of INR 15,76,06,965 together with interest @ 18% p.a. from the date of the claim (i.e., 1st December, 2020) till the filing of the complaint and further interest @ 18% p.a. or such other rate this Hon'ble Commission may deem fit and proper from the date of the complaint till realisation of the Complainant's claim.
(b) That the Opposite Party be directed to bear the Complainant's legal costs amounting to Rs.1,00,000.
(c) That the Opposite Party may be immediately directed by the present Complainant to release the assessed amount of Rs.1,02,63,078, in favour of the present Complainant, during the pendency of the present Consumer Complaint;
(d) That such further orders be passed as this Hon'ble Commission may deem fit in the circumstances of the present case."

2. The Complainant had taken insurance policies amounting to Rs.52,15,24,370 from the New India Assurance Co. Ltd. by paying a premium of Rs.2,51,896, as per the averments made in para - 2 of the Complaint. The Complaint has been filed on 30/11/2021. S.58(1)(a)(i) of the Consumer Protection Act, 2019 , which had come into force w.e.f. 20 / 24/07/2020, envisages that the pecuniary jurisdiction of this Commission will be where the value of goods and services paid as consideration exceeds Rs.10.00 Crores. From January, 2022 the amount has been reduced to Rs.2.00 Crores.

3. This Commission in Consumer Case No. 833 of 2020 (M/s Pyaridevi Chabiraj Steels Pvt. Ltd. v. National Insurance Co. Ltd. & 3 Others) decided on 28/08/2020 had considered the question of pecuniary jurisdiction in respect of the Insurance Policy obtained by a person and had come to the conclusion that the amount of premium paid will only determine the value of consideration paid irrespective of the amount of insurance cover.

4. For ready reference, Paragraphs 5-10 of the Order in the case of M/s Pyaridevi Chabiraj Steels Pvt. Ltd. v. National Insurance Co. Ltd. & 3 Others (Supra) are reproduced below:
5. In the present case a preliminary point arises as to how this Consumer Complaint is maintainable before the National Consumer Disputes Redressal Commission (hereinafter referred to as "the National Commission") because the value of the consideration paid in the present case i.e. premium paid for taking the Insurance Policies was only Rs.3,20,525 and Rs.1,23,037 the total of which comes to Rs.4,43,562 (Rupees Four Lac forty three thousand five hundred and sixty two only), which is less than the consideration paid of more than Rs.10,00,00,000 (Rupees Ten crores) as provided under S.58(1)(a)(i) of the Act of 2019.
6. Mr. Joy Saha, learned Senior Counsel on behalf of the Complainant submitted that under S.21(a)(i) of the Consumer Protection Act, 1986 (hereinafter referred to as "the Act of 1986") the National Commission had the jurisdiction to entertain Complaints where the value of the good or services and compensation, if any, claimed exceeds Rs.1,00,00,000 (Rupees One crore), whereas under S.58(1)(a)(i) of the Act of 2019 the National Commission has jurisdiction to entertain Complaints where the value of the goods or services paid as consideration exceeds Rs.10,00,00,000 (Rupees Ten crores). According to the learned Senior Counsel only the value of the compensation claimed has been omitted from S.58(1)(a)(i) of the Act of 2019 and the present Consumer Complaint is maintainable and this Commission will