Coaching centre fined Rs 11 lakh for misleading UPSC ads

Hyderabad: The Central Consumer Protection Authority (CCPA) has fined VisionIAS Rs 11 lakh for publishing misleading advertisements about UPSC Civil Services Exam results for 2022 and 2023.

VisionIAS, a Delhi-based coaching institute with centres across India, including Hyderabad, claimed high success rates on its website. The ads said the institute had “7 candidates in the top 10 and 79 in the top 100” in the 2023 exam, and “39 candidates in the top 50” in the 2022 exam. The advertisements showed the names, photos, and ranks of successful candidates.

The CCPA took up the case on its own and found that while VisionIAS clearly mentioned the course taken by one top ranker, it did not disclose the courses chosen by other successful candidates shown in the ads.

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After investigation, the authority found that the institute claimed more than 119 successful candidates over two years. However, only three of them were enrolled in full foundation courses. Most of the others had only used services like test series, mock interviews, or one-time tests.

The CCPA said this lack of clear information misled students and parents into believing that VisionIAS was fully responsible for the candidates’ success at all stages of the UPSC exam. This amounts to misleading advertising under the Consumer Protection Act, 2019.

The authority also noted that VisionIAS had been warned earlier for similar advertisements. Despite this, the institute continued to make such claims, showing poor compliance with regulations.

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