Centre issues guidelines for regulation of coaching centres

The proposed Guidelines for Regulation of Coaching Centre 2024 released by the Centre suggest that students younger than 16-year-olds should not be enrolled in coaching centres.
Addressing the need for a legal framework and managing the unregulated growth of private coaching centres, Centre has prepared model guidelines for states to implement to regulate coaching centres in India.
The proposed Guidelines for Regulation of Coaching Centre 2024 released by the Centre suggest that students younger than 16-year-olds should not be enrolled in coaching centres. The guidelines also suggest that coaching centres should not make misleading promises or guarantee ranks to parents and students. Tutors with qualifications less than graduation should not be allowed to teach in coaching institutes either, the guidelines propose.
“The number of unregulated private coaching centres in the country continues to grow in the absence of any laid down policy or regulation. Instances of such centres charging exorbitant fees from students, undue stress on students resulting in students committing suicides, loss of precious lives due to fire and other accidents, and many other malpractices being adopted by these centres are widely reported in the media,” the document said.
Giving teeth to the policy, the Centre has suggested penalising coaching centres for charging exorbitant fees from students, causing undue stress leading to student suicide and other malpractices up to 1 lakh or cancellation of registration.
To ensure proper monitoring, the centre has proposed registration of new and existing coaching centres within three months after such guidelines come into effect. The state government will be responsible for monitoring the activities of the coaching centre and enquire about any coaching centre regarding the fulfilment of required eligibility of registration and satisfactory activities of the coaching centre. “Considering that regulation of +2 level education is the responsibility of State / UT Governments, hence these institutions are best regulated by the State / UT governments,” the document states.
The Centre’s guidelines have attempted to crack down on the rampant practice of advertising misleading promises like good rank or marks to attract more students to enrol in coaching institutes. “No coaching centre shall publish or cause to be published or take part in the publication of any misleading advertisement relating to any claim, directly or indirectly, of quality of coaching or the facilities offered therein or the result procured by such coaching centre or the student who attended such class,” the guidelines states.
To ensure the mental welfare of students attending coaching centres, the guidelines suggest weekly off for students, suitably spaced-out curriculum and classes no longer than five hours a day.
The guidelines have come in the wake of an exponential rise in suicide cases, especially among students preparing for competitive entrance exams. In 2023 alone, 28 cases of student suicide were reported with most cases in Kota, Rajasthan–the renown coaching district of India.
Coaching centres will be required to maintain a website with updated details of the qualification of tutors, courses or curriculum, duration of completion, hostel facilities and the fees being charged. An easy exit policy and details of a fee refund policy will also have to be furnished on the website. The guidelines also recommend coaching centres to refund fees fully paid by a student on a pro-rata basis within 10 days, in case they wish to exit the course.
The guidelines also state the provision for filing complaints before “a competent authority” against the coaching centres by the student, parent or even tutor. The complaints, guidelines state, will have to be disposed of within thirty days.
For students still in school, the coaching classes will be restricted during the schools hours, so that their regular attendance in such institutions is not affected.
To keep students “connected with family” and receive “emotional boosting”, coaching centres, as suggested by the guidelines, will have to customise leaves. Co-curricular activities, life skills, counselling from a psychologist, emotional bonding and mental well-being will have to be prioritised in coaching centres, the guidelines said.