upGrad’s Mayank Kumar Steps Down as Chairperson of India Edtech Consortium (IEC), PhysicsWallah’s Maheshwari To Take Over

• ByStartupStory     |    October 4, 2023

Mayank Kumar, co-founder and managing director of upGrad, a leading upskilling edtech unicorn, has resigned as the chairperson of the India Edtech Consortium (IEC). The IEC is a self-regulatory body established in 2022 to address consumer complaints within the edtech sector. Kumar’s decision to step down is reportedly to allow him to focus more on upGrad’s operations.

Prateek Maheshwari, co-founder of PhysicsWallah, will succeed Mayank Kumar as the chairperson of the IEC. This change in leadership was confirmed by both Kumar and Maheshwari to Moneycontrol.

The IEC was formed under the Internet and Mobile Association of India (IAMAI) and includes representatives from various edtech companies, claiming to represent 95 percent of the Indian learner community. In November 2022, consumer affairs secretary Rohit Kumar Singh held a closed-room meeting with IEC members to review the self-regulatory body’s progress. Earlier in July, Singh had warned of “stringent actions” if self-regulation in the edtech industry failed.

While the IEC and its Independent Grievance Review Board (IGRB) have resolved some complaints, including one from learners of Byju’s-owned Great Learning, they also faced challenges. The IGRB, with members like former Supreme Court judge Justice BS Chauhan, has advised edtech companies to avoid ambiguous language in their advertisements. The IEC and IGRB have also issued a code of conduct for advertising and marketing that edtech companies are expected to follow.

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