The Central Consumer Protection Authority (CCPA) has imposed a penalty ₹2 lakh on Shubhra Ranjan IAS Study for publishing a misleading advertisement regarding UPSC Civil Service Exam 2023.

The coaching institute claimed “13 students in Top 100”, “28 students in Top 200” and “39 students in Top 300” in UPSC CSE 2023. The advertisements prominently depicted photographs and names of the successful candidates without disclosing the courses opted by the candidates and the length of the course attended.

However, the DG Investigation report found that most of the claimed successful students took Political Science and International Relations (PSIR) crash course & test series which comes into play after clearing Preliminary examination.

The CCPA also imposed penalty on the institute for using the terms such as “Shubhra Ranjan IAS” and “Students of Shubhra Ranjan IAS” in its advertisements and letterheads, creating a deceptive impression that Mrs. Shubhra Ranjan is/was an IAS officer.

On 22 November 2024, CCPA imposed a penalty of ₹ 7 Lakh on Vajirao & Reddy Institute for advertising misleading claims regarding results of UPSC CSE 2022. The institute in its advertisement claimed “617 selections out of 933 in UPSC CSE 2022” and “We are ranked at 1st position among the list of top UPSC Coaching Institutes in India”. The CCPA found out that all the claimed 617 successful candidates were enrolled in the Interview Guidance Programme, provided “Free of Cost”. The CCPA issued an Order against Vajirao & Reddy Institute to discontinue the misleading advertisement with immediate effect.

In its crackdown against misleading advertisements by coaching institutes, the CCPA has so far issued 45 notices to various coaching institutes for misleading advertisements. The CCPA has imposed a penalty of 63 lakhs 60 thousands on 20 coaching institutes and directed them to discontinue the misleading advertisements.