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New Delhi: The Central Consumer Protection Authority (CCPA) has pulled several coaching centers to incite advertising criteria and engage in improper trade practices, especially institutions that help students prepare for the joint entrance examination (JEE) for graduate engineering programs and national eligibility cum entry tests (NEET).
The Union Consumer Affairs Ministry said in a statement on Thursday that many major institutions have been found misusing the success stories after a recent announcement of the results of the entrance examination, which makes up exaggerated or unnatural claims to attract new nominations.
CCPA has issued notices to coaching institutes on claims related to guaranteed admission and assured rank in competitive examinations like JEE and NEET.
However, CCPA has not disclosed the names of coaching centers, which have been kept in notice.
These notices are related to the alleged violations of the Consumer Protection Act and its affiliated guidelines, especially on denying misleading advertisements, unfair trade practices and consumer rights.
Institutions have been drawn to make institutions to make unbalanced promises of top ranks, offer assured selection and fail to give promised services. Complaints also include cases where admissions without admission were canceled, lack of services or only partially provided, and return policies were either not honored or only partially implemented.
The Consumer Protection Affairs has emphasized the need for strict adherence to the Consumer Protection Act, 2019, and guidelines for the prevention of misleading advertisements in the coaching field, 2024.
The directions notified in November 2024 clearly restrict such practices and call for the complete disclosure of the students credentials, course types and payment conditions with a clear disgrace in the same font size.
The Ministry of Consumer Affairs, a senior familiar with development, said, “Advertisement should hide important information from clear, honest and future students and their families.”
The officer said on the condition of anonymity, “The claims of selective performance of the toppers without guaranteed results or complete disclosure are both misleading and immoral.”
This is not the first time CCPA has worked against such practices. In the last three years, the authority has issued 49 notices and punished 77.60 lakhs in 24 coaching institutes across India. Not only for Engineering and Medical Entrance Examination, but also Civil Services and Banking Exams such as Union Public Service Commission (UPSC), Reserve Bank of India (RBI) and National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development (NABARD) have come under scanner.
Millions of candidates with the coaching industry are seen as an important step to bring more transparency in the region, with millions of candidates with catering and racking in significant revenue. Parents and students often rely on coaching advertisements while nomination decisions, and misleading claims can distort that decision, sometimes with permanent results.
As the pressure is to follow the institutes, CCPA has reiterated that any violation of advertising criteria or consumer rights will invite strict punishment. The authority is expected to monitor the upcoming entry cycle more closely to prevent recurrence of such violations.
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