CCPA imposes penalties on three coaching centers for deceptive UPSC CSE advertising
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New Delhi, Dec 26 (NationPress) The Central Consumer Protection Authority (CCPA) has penalized three coaching centers: Vajirao and Reddy Institute, StudyIQ IAS, and Edge IAS for making misleading claims about the outcomes of the UPSC Civil Services Exam (CSE) for 2022 and 2023.
The CCPA found violations of the Consumer Protection Act, 2019, with Section 2(28)(iv) of the Act categorizing misleading advertisements as those that intentionally hide critical information.
A fine of Rs 7 lakh was levied on Vajirao and Reddy Institute and StudyIQ IAS each, while Edge IAS was fined Rs 1 lakh.
According to the Ministry of Consumer Affairs, Food & Public Distribution, “These measures are designed to safeguard and uphold the rights of consumers and to prevent any false or misleading advertisements concerning goods or services that violate the provisions of the Consumer Protection Act, 2019.”
The CCPA determined that Vajirao and Reddy Institute prominently showcased the names and photographs of successful candidates while simultaneously promoting various paid courses on its website.
However, the advertisement failed to disclose the specific courses taken by these successful candidates in the UPSC Civil Service Exam 2022.
Moreover, the advertisement claimed that 617 successful candidates participated in the Interview Guidance Programme, but it did not specify the courses that these candidates completed at the coaching center.
“By intentionally omitting details about the specific courses chosen by each successful candidate, Vajirao and Reddy Institute misrepresented the success rate of all its courses, which is misleading. Such details are essential for prospective students to make informed decisions about suitable courses and should not have been concealed,” the ministry stated.
In a similar vein, StudyIQ IAS also failed to disclose the names of the specific courses chosen by successful candidates, leading to a false impression among consumers.
“StudyIQ IAS was unable to substantiate its claims of 'Success Pakka Offer' and 'Selection Pakka Offer' and did not provide the Application/Enrollment/Registration forms and fee receipts for the claimed successful candidates from UPSC CSE 2023,” the ministry noted.
“Given these circumstances, the CCPA deemed it essential to impose penalties in order to protect young and impressionable aspirants/consumers from such false or misleading advertisements and unfair trade practices,” it added.
Furthermore, Edge IAS published an advertisement that prominently featured the names and photographs of 13 successful candidates from the UPSC Civil Service Exam 2023, while neglecting to disclose important information such as the courses they selected.
The CCPA remarked that numerous coaching institutes utilize the names and images of successful candidates in their advertisements while deliberately omitting critical course details to create a false impression that these successful candidates were regular students at their coaching centers or enrolled in multiple courses offered in the advertisement.
The CCPA has been actively addressing misleading advertisements from coaching institutes.
So far, the regulator has issued 45 notices to various coaching centers for misleading advertisements and has collected a total of Rs 71.6 lakh in penalties from 22 coaching institutes. It has also instructed them to cease such misleading advertisements.
