India, Feb. 26 -- Coaching and professional institutes in several states have paid back a total of Rs.1.56 crore they owed to students in dues and refunds, which they had been denying in violation of their own terms and conditions, following a nationwide crackdown by the consumer affairs ministry, a top bureaucrat overseeing the exercise said.

Most of these education firms which complied with instructions to make immediate refunds have been let off with a warning while a special team formed to look into complaints by students is pursuing others, consumer affairs secretary Nidhi Khare said.

"By resolving grievances at the pre-litigation stage, the ministry has helped to prevent the escalation of disputes. This has proven especially benef...