The Central Consumer Protection Authority (CCPA) has imposed a penalty of ₹7 lakh on Delhi-based coaching institute Vajiram & Ravi IAS Study Centre for allegedly publishing misleading advertisements related to the UPSC Civil Services Examination (CSE) results. The action comes after the authority found that the institute had concealed important information while promoting the success of candidates in the UPSC CSE 2023 examination.
According to the Ministry of Consumer Affairs, the institute prominently advertised claims such as “8 Rank Holders in the Top 10” and “37 Rank Holders in the Top 50” being associated with Vajiram & Ravi. The advertisements also suggested that more than 30% of UPSC-selected officers every year were students of the institute. However, the CCPA found that many of these candidates had not enrolled in the institute’s full-fledged coaching programmes.
The investigation revealed that seven out of the eight top-10 rank holders and 29 out of the 37 top-50 rank holders mentioned in the advertisements had participated only in the institute’s free Interview Guidance Programme (IGP). The authority noted that the programme is conducted after candidates independently clear the highly competitive Preliminary and Mains examinations, meaning the institute could not claim full credit for their success.
The CCPA further observed a similar pattern over multiple years. According to its findings, 86.36% of successful candidates associated with the institute in 2021, 78.31% in 2022, 97.56% in 2023, and 71.69% in 2024 had enrolled only in the Interview Guidance Programme. Despite this, the institute allegedly failed to clearly disclose the nature of their enrolment in its promotional material.
The authority held that withholding such information amounted to a misleading advertisement under the Consumer Protection Act, 2019, as it created the impression that these candidates were products of the institute’s comprehensive coaching programmes. The CCPA stated that such practices can influence students and parents while making decisions about expensive coaching courses.
The penalty is part of a wider crackdown on misleading advertisements in India’s coaching industry. The CCPA has issued more than 60 notices to coaching institutes and imposed penalties exceeding ₹1.46 crore on institutes preparing students for competitive examinations including UPSC, IIT-JEE, NEET and RBI recruitment exams.
