# Maharashtra drafts law to regulate private coaching centres after NEET leak 2026-08-24T03:02:28+00:00 | Governance | Indian Opinion Desk Corroboration: 2 independent outlets Maharashtra has published the draft Maharashtra Private Coaching Centres (Registration and Regulation) Bill, 2026, aiming to rein in coaching centres after the NEET-UG paper leak in May. The bill proposes mandatory registration with a minimum of 25 students per centre, bans school-coaching integrations, caps fees, requires refunds within 10 days, and mandates safety measures such as CCTV, fire certificates, and counsellor access. Teaching hours are capped at five per day, and centres cannot admit students under 13. A private coaching institute union representing 50,000 classes has called the bill 'oppressive' and 'unrealistic', citing Rs 1, 5 lakh fines for vaguely defined minor violations and unrealistic requirements for home-tuition teachers. The state is the fifth to regulate coaching centres, following Haryana, Rajasthan, Assam, and Jharkhand. The School Education and Sports Department has invited public suggestions and objections until September 4, after which the bill will be finalised. ## Indian Opinion Analysis The draft bill’s framing differs sharply by outlet. India TV News leads with the government’s formal process, publication and invitation for objections, presenting the law as a straightforward regulatory measure. The Hindu, by contrast, foregrounds the NEET paper leak context and the consortium’s protest, and gives substantial space to the private coaching union’s criticism, calling the bill 'oppressive' and 'unrealistic'. India TV News omits the union’s objections entirely, while The Hindu reports them in detail. A balanced reading treats the bill as a response to genuine student-safety and fee concerns, prompted by the NEET scandal, but acknowledges that its one-size-fits-all clauses, such as fines of Rs 1, 5 lakh for vaguely defined minor violations and mandatory registration with a 25-student minimum, risk harming small home-tuition teachers. The public objection window closes on September 4. ## Coverage Coverage: 2 sources, 2 neutral - indiatvnews.com (neutral report) Leads with the government's publication and public-invitation process, omitting the union's criticism - thehindu.com (neutral report) Leads with the NEET paper-leak context and foregrounds the coaching union's objection as 'oppressive' This story was synthesised by AI from the 2 sources linked above. Updated: this story now draws on 2 sources. Last updated 2026-08-25T05:56:42+00:00. Tags: Maharashtra, Maharashtra Private Coaching Centres Bill, School Education and Sports Department Canonical: https://indianopinion.org/maharashtra-drafts-bill-to-regulate-private-coaching-centres/ License: Summary and commentary (c) Indian Opinion, reusable with attribution. Facts belong to the linked sources. Cite: https://indianopinion.org/maharashtra-drafts-bill-to-regulate-private-coaching-centres/#story-in-brief How this brief was made: an AI model read the reports linked above and wrote this summary and analysis, which were published automatically. Published briefs are sampled every hour by an automated quality check; the editor verifies its findings and approves corrections, and corrected briefs carry a dated correction line. Stance labels are editorial classifications of how each outlet framed this story, assigned by the same model, not ratings of the outlets. We do no original reporting. Methodology: https://indianopinion.org/ai-use-policy/