The Competition (Amendment) Bill, 2022

What is the News?

Recently, the Competition (Amendment) Bill, 2022 was introduced in the Lok Sabha. 

Key Points:

The Bill seeks to amend the Competition Act, 2002.

Need for the amendments:

• Amendments became necessary to sustain and promote market competition because the dynamics of the market changed rapidly due to technological advancements, artificial intelligence, and the increasing importance of factors.
• A review committee was established in 2019 which proposed several major amendments. 

key features of the Bill: Some of the major amendments include 

• Gives the Commission authority to appoint the DG rather than the Central government etc. 
• Permit CCI to seize documents and record during probes.
• Assessment in 150 days
• Reduces litigations through penalty
• Incentivise parties during an investigation with lesser penalty

Conclusion: 

• By implementing these amendments, the Commission should be better equipped to handle certain aspects of the new-age market and transform its functioning to be more robust.