The Ministry of Union government has issued 45 notices to institutes of coaching across India for false advertisement and unfair trade practices, which shows an increased crackdown on fraud in the education system. Among those, a fine of ₹61.60 lakh has been levied on the 19 coaching institutions, Union Minister of State for Consumer Affairs, B.L. Verma, during a Lok Sabha session on Wednesday.
The advisories to coaching centers followed after complaints regarding misleading statements being made in advertisements directed at candidates of competitive examinations such as UPSC, JEE, and NEET. To this end, the Central Consumer Protection Authority (CCPA) has issued the Guidelines for Prevention of Misleading Advertisements in the Coaching Sector, 2024.
These guidelines prohibit institutes from overstating success rates or from using fabrications in the form of “best case” reports and acknowledge the importance of obtaining the written consent of the students to be published in promotional material.
Government issues notices to coaching institutes across India, demands to disclose fees
Verma highlighted that coaching centers must now disclose the financial arrangements of their courses, such as whether fees were self-funded or sponsored. They are also required to collaborate with the National Consumer Helpline (NCH) so that students can lodge complaints of unfair practices against them. Till now the NCH has already been able to settle ₹1.15 crore refund for students cheated by coaching centers’ advertisements
Increased competition for places in engineering, medical, and civil service courses has made the pressure on applicants more acute. Exaggerated claims of success have caused mental distress, and in some cases, student suicides. Recently Sriram’s IAS coaching institute was penalized with ₹3 lakh for false advertisements.
At the same time, these notices to coaching centers appear in the context of more general worries regarding the unmonitored activities of these centers. In July, three college students died drowning in floodwater in an unauthorized basement classroom in Delhi (again highlighting the dangers of this booming sector). In the meantime, Kota, Rajasthan is under focus for the mental pressure exerted on the students who are preparing for the competitive examinations far away from their families.
The government’s determined intervention seeks to foster accountability in the coaching industry and to safeguard students from abuse in their educational experience.
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