Taking a strict action for making misleading claims regarding the results of UPSC Civil Services Examinations, the Central Consumer Protection Authority (CCPA) has imposed penalties over the leading IAS coaching academies.
As per the information the CCPA has imposed a penalty of Rs 7 lakh each on Vajirao and Reddy Institute and Study IQ IAS and Rs 1 lakh on Edge IAS for advertising misleading claims regarding the results of the UPSC CSE 2022 and 2023, respectively.
The CCPA, led by Chief Commissioner Nidhi Khare and Commissioner Anupam Mishra has directed these coaching institutes to immediately cease their misleading advertisements. This action has been taken under the Consumer Protection Act, 2019, with the aim of safeguarding consumer rights and promoting transparency. The CCPA found that Vajirao and Reddy Institute prominently displayed the names and photographs of successful candidates in UPSC CSE 2022 on their advertisements without disclosing the specific courses those candidates had taken.
An investigation revealed that out of the 617 claimed successful candidates, 134 had opted for various courses, with 126 enrolled in the Interview Guidance Programme (IGP). StudyIQ IAS failed to substantiate its claims such as “Success Pakka Offer” and “Selection Pakka Offer” and did not provide registration forms or fee receipts for the claimed successful candidates. The CCPA found that these claims created a misleading impression of the institute’s services among aspirants.
Similarly, the Edge IAS, in its advertisements, showcased the names and photographs of 13 successful candidates but failed to disclose that 11 of them had enrolled in the Interview Guidance Programme and 2 in the Mentoring Course.
The CCPA noted that many coaching institutes use the names and photographs of successful candidates to create the false impression that they were regular classroom students or enrolled in multiple courses offered by the institutes.
So far, the CCPA has issued notices to 45 coaching institutes for misleading advertisements and imposed fines totaling ₹71.6 lakh on 22 institutes. These institutes have been instructed to discontinue their misleading advertisements immediately.
The CCPA has advised aspirants and young candidates to exercise caution and verify the information provided by coaching institutes before making decisions.
The authority has also assured that strict measures will continue to be taken against such misleading advertisements to protect the interests of students and consumers.
