NEW DELHI: The Central Consumer Protection Authority (CCPA) on Friday imposed a penalty of Rs 5 lakh on Drishti IAS (VDK Eduventures Pvt Ltd) for publishing misleading advertisements about its role in the success of candidates in the UPSC Civil Services Examination (CSE) 2022.
In its promotional material, Drishti IAS prominently claimed “216 selections in UPSC CSE 2022” while displaying names and photographs of successful candidates. However, a CCPA investigation found that the advertisement concealed crucial details about the type and duration of courses availed by these candidates.
According to the Consumer Affairs Ministry, of the 216 candidates highlighted, 162 (around 75%) had only participated in the institute’s free Interview Guidance Programme (IGP) after independently clearing the Preliminary and Mains examinations. Only 54 students had enrolled in IGP along with other paid courses.
By withholding such information, the institute misled aspirants and their families into believing that it had played a key role in the candidates’ success across all stages of the exam, CCPA observed.
So far, the CCPA has issued 54 notices to coaching institutes over misleading advertisements, imposing penalties of more than Rs 90.6 lakh.