Unacademy, Byju's IAS, Drishti IAS among 20 coaching institutes under scanner for misleading claims: Sources

Unacademy, Byju's IAS, Drishti IAS, and Vajirao & Reddy Institue are among 20 coaching institutes under scanner for misleading and deceptive claims, sources told Business Today on Monday. The central government has sent notices to 20 coaching institutes for misleading claims, sources said. 

This comes just months after the Central Consumer Protection Authority (CCPA) slapped Rs 1 lakh fine each on IQRA IAS Institute and Rau's IAS Study Circle for misleading advertisement.  

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Sources said that the government is likely to make it mandatory for IAS coaching centres to disclose the details of tall claims they make to attract aspirants. The government may notify the rules this week for coaching centres preparing students for the toughest competitive exams.

The sources stated that celebrities should exercise caution, and should not endorse a coaching centre without fact-checking and should not say anything which cannot be substantiated.

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In August this year, the CCPA imposed a fine of Rs 1 lakh against IQRA IAS Institute for misleading advertisement related to testimonials of top-rank holders in the UPSC civil service exam and directed them to withdraw false claims from its website immediately.

The authority had issued an order against the institute for misleading advertisement and unfair trade practice by advertising misleading testimonials of top-rank holders of the years 2015 and 2017 in the UPSC Civil Services Exam.

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The issue came to the notice of CCPA through the website of IQRA IAS Institute. The authority found that the institute, which was established in 2018, deliberately and falsely claimed through the testimonials of top-rank holders of UPSC CSE in 2015 and 2017 as their students which was factually deceiving.

The authority found that the testimonials of All India Rank holders Tina Dabi (AIR-1, 2015); Athar Amir Ul Safi Khan, (AIR-2, 2015); Himanshu Kaushik, (AIR-77, 2015); Saifin (AIR-570, 2017) were hosted by IQRA IAS Institute which itself was set up in 2018, "thereby deceiving consumers into believing that such successful candidates owe their success to the institution".

"IQRA IAS Institute by making such exaggerated claims not only falsely represented its service by deliberately concealing important information but also conveyed express and implied representation to mislead the class of consumers for deceptively promoting their services," the Ministry of Consumer Affairs said in a statement.

Rau's IAS Study Circle was fined in June. The CCPA said that Rau's IAS Study Circle had made false claims in its advertisements, such as claiming that its students had secured top ranks in the civil services examinations.