The Forum of Free Enterprise is a non-political organization founded in 1956 by A. D. Shroff, and has been established to educate public opinion in India on free enterprise and a democratic way of life. The Forum publishes booklets to further its objects. The following booklet titled “Moving Towards An Empowered Customer” was published on June 8, 2007 and is the textual reproduction of the speech delivered by Mrs Usha Thorat on the occasion of the M R Pai Memorial Award Function. This address focuses on the increasingly prominent role of the consumer in a rapidly globalising market. Sovereignty of the consumer is and ensuring fair treatment of the consumer in today’s markets are key topics of importance being discussed in this address. Mrs. Throat also talks of the specific experience of the Indian consumer, focusing on several initiatives of the Reserve Bank of India to make customer service at banks more effective, including the establishment of the Banking Codes and Standards Board of India in 2006. She also gives several tips that consumers can follow to ensure that they are not exploited in the market.