Terms of Service

1. Introduction & Acceptance

Welcome to TopSchools.in ("Platform", "we", "us", or "our"), a school directory and education information platform owned and operated by TopSchools.in, a company registered under the laws of India, with its principal place of business in Pune, Maharashtra.

By accessing, browsing, registering on, or otherwise using TopSchools.in (the "Platform"), you ("User", "you", or "your") agree to be legally bound by these Terms of Service ("Terms"). These Terms constitute a binding legal agreement between you and TopSchools.in. If you do not agree to these Terms, you must immediately stop using the Platform. Your continued use of the Platform following the posting of any changes to these Terms shall constitute your acceptance of such changes.

These Terms apply to all users of the Platform, including but not limited to parents, students, school administrators, teachers, advertisers, and school listing partners.

2. Definitions

To ensure clarity throughout this document, the following terms carry specific meanings:

• "Platform" refers to the website topschools.in, its subdomains, mobile-responsive versions, APIs, and any associated digital products.
• "User" refers to any individual or entity accessing the Platform in any capacity — whether as a visitor, registered user, school representative, parent, advertiser, or paying subscriber.
• "School Listing" means a page or profile on the Platform representing a school, college, coaching center, or educational institution.
• "Content" means any text, images, videos, data, reviews, ratings, forms, school profiles, or any other material published, uploaded, or submitted on the Platform.
• "Registered User" refers to any person who has created an account on the Platform by providing their details.
• "School Partner / Claimed Listing" refers to a school or institution that has claimed, verified, or subscribed to manage its listing on the Platform.
• "Premium Services" refers to any paid subscription plans, featured listings, lead generation services, or any other paid features offered by the Platform.

3. Eligibility

To use this Platform, you must meet the following eligibility requirements:

• You must be at least 18 years of age to create an account, claim a school listing, or access Premium Services. If you are between 13 and 17 years of age, you may only use the Platform under the supervision and with the consent of a parent or legal guardian.
• If you are accessing the Platform on behalf of a school, educational institution, or organization, you represent and warrant that you have the legal authority to bind that entity to these Terms. By accepting these Terms, you represent that all information you provide is accurate, current, and complete.
• TopSchools.in reserves the right to suspend or terminate accounts where eligibility cannot be verified or where false information has been provided.

4. Platform Description & Services

TopSchools.in is a school discovery and information platform that enables parents, students, and educational stakeholders to search, compare, and evaluate schools and educational institutions across India. The Platform offers the following core services:

• 4.1 School Directory & Search — A searchable database of schools across India, filterable by city, board (CBSE, ICSE, IB, State Board, etc.), fee range, facilities, and other parameters.
• 4.2 School Profiles — Each listed school may have a detailed profile including name, address, contact information, fee structure, board affiliation, facilities, gallery images, and admission details. Some data may be aggregated from publicly available sources and may not always be up to date.
• 4.3 User Reviews & Ratings — Registered users, including parents and students, may submit reviews and star ratings for schools. TopSchools.in does not endorse any review and is not responsible for their accuracy.
• 4.4 Admission Enquiries & Lead Generation — Users may submit admission enquiry forms for schools. By submitting an enquiry, you consent to being contacted by the respective school or by TopSchools.in on behalf of the school.
• 4.5 Claimed & Verified Listings (School Partners) — Schools may claim their listing and access a dashboard to update information, respond to reviews, view leads, and subscribe to Premium Services such as featured placements, banner advertising, and CRM-linked lead delivery.
• 4.6 Content & Comparison Tools — Users may access blog content, school comparison tools, and ranking lists provided by TopSchools.in for informational purposes only.

TopSchools.in reserves the right to modify, discontinue, or expand any service at any time without prior notice.

5. User Accounts & Registration

• 5.1 Account Creation — To access certain features of the Platform (submitting reviews, tracking saved schools, claiming listings), you must register and create an account. You agree to provide accurate, complete, and current information during registration.
• 5.2 Account Security — You are solely responsible for maintaining the confidentiality of your login credentials and for all activities occurring under your account. You agree to notify us immediately at [email protected] if you suspect unauthorized access to your account.
• 5.3 One Account Per User — Each person may maintain only one personal account. Creating multiple accounts to circumvent bans, post multiple reviews for the same school, or manipulate ratings is strictly prohibited.
• 5.4 Account Termination — TopSchools.in reserves the right to suspend or permanently terminate accounts that violate these Terms, engage in fraudulent behavior, or harm the integrity of the Platform, without prior notice or liability.

6. School Listings & Data Accuracy

• 6.1 Data Sources — School listings on TopSchools.in may be compiled from publicly available government databases, CBSE/ICSE/state board affiliation records, school websites, and user-submitted data. While we strive for accuracy, we do not guarantee that all listing data is complete, current, or error-free.
• 6.2 No Endorsement — The presence of any school on the Platform does not constitute an endorsement, recommendation, or certification by TopSchools.in of that institution's quality, safety, or legitimacy.
• 6.3 Listing Disputes — If a school believes its information is incorrectly listed, it may contact us at [email protected] to request a correction. TopSchools.in will make commercially reasonable efforts to address such requests but does not guarantee any specific turnaround time.
• 6.4 Unclaimed Listings — Schools that have not claimed their listing may have publicly available data displayed without their direct consent. Such schools may claim and manage their listing by contacting TopSchools.in.
• 6.5 Right to Remove — TopSchools.in reserves the right to remove any school listing at its sole discretion, for any reason, including but not limited to legal requirements, complaints, or business decisions.

7. User-Generated Content (Reviews, Ratings & Submissions)

• 7.1 Content Ownership — By submitting any content to the Platform (reviews, comments, images, Q&A responses, etc.), you grant TopSchools.in a non-exclusive, royalty-free, perpetual, irrevocable, and worldwide license to use, reproduce, display, distribute, modify, and create derivative works of such content in connection with operating and promoting the Platform.
• 7.2 Content Standards — All user-submitted content must be honest, factual, and relevant to the school being reviewed. You must not submit content that is defamatory, abusive, obscene, discriminatory, misleading, or that violates any applicable law.
• 7.3 Prohibited Content — The following types of content are strictly prohibited: fake reviews, reviews submitted by school employees about their own institution, reviews containing personally identifiable information of minors, spam, or promotional content submitted as reviews.
• 7.4 Content Moderation — TopSchools.in reserves the right (but not the obligation) to review, edit, or remove any user-submitted content that violates these Terms or that we deem inappropriate, without notice to the submitting user.
• 7.5 Liability — TopSchools.in is not liable for any user-generated content. Users who submit content are solely responsible for ensuring their submissions do not violate any third-party rights, laws, or regulations.

8. Admission Enquiries & Lead Policy

• 8.1 Consent to Contact — By submitting an admission enquiry form on the Platform, you explicitly consent to being contacted by the school you enquired about and/or by TopSchools.in, via phone, WhatsApp, SMS, or email, regarding admission-related information.
• 8.2 No Admission Guarantee — Submitting an enquiry through TopSchools.in does not guarantee admission to any school, nor does it constitute an application to the school. All admissions are governed solely by the respective school's policies and applicable laws.
• 8.3 Lead Data Sharing — Enquiry data, including your name, phone number, email, child's grade, and preferred school, may be shared with the school to which the enquiry was directed and, if applicable, with partner schools that match your criteria. We do not sell this data to unrelated third parties.
• 8.4 Opt-Out — Users who wish to stop receiving communications from TopSchools.in or partner schools may opt out by emailing [email protected] or using the unsubscribe link in email communications.

9. Premium Services & Payment Terms

• 9.1 Paid Services — TopSchools.in offers optional premium features to schools and institutions, including but not limited to Featured Listings, Top Placement in Search Results, Lead Generation Packages, CRM Integration, Analytics Dashboards, and School Verification Badges.
• 9.2 Pricing — All pricing for Premium Services is displayed on the Platform or communicated via a sales proposal. Prices are in Indian Rupees (INR) and are inclusive of GST unless stated otherwise.
• 9.3 Payment — Payments may be made via online bank transfer (NEFT/IMPS/RTGS), UPI, credit/debit card, or such other methods as may be made available. Payment is due in advance before activation of any Premium Service unless a written credit agreement exists.
• 9.4 Refund Policy — All payments for Premium Services are non-refundable once the service has been activated or the listing has gone live, except in cases where: (a) the service was not delivered as described, or (b) TopSchools.in cancels the service due to reasons attributable to our own fault. Refund requests must be made within 7 days of payment via email to [email protected].
• 9.5 Auto-Renewal — If a subscription-based Premium Service is set to auto-renew, you will be notified at least 7 days before the renewal date. You may cancel the auto-renewal at any time before the renewal date.
• 9.6 Service Modification — TopSchools.in reserves the right to change the pricing, features, or terms of any Premium Service at any time. Existing subscribers will be notified of material changes with at least 30 days' prior notice.

10. Intellectual Property Rights

• 10.1 Platform Ownership — All content on TopSchools.in that is not user-generated, including the website design, layout, code, logos, trademarks, compiled school data, rankings methodology, and editorial content, is the exclusive intellectual property of TopSchools.in or its licensors, protected under the Copyright Act, 1957 and the Trade Marks Act, 1999 of India.
• 10.2 Restricted Use — You may not copy, reproduce, scrape, mirror, republish, transmit, distribute, or commercially exploit any content from the Platform without prior written permission from TopSchools.in. This includes using automated tools, bots, or scrapers to harvest school data.
• 10.3 Limited License to Users — TopSchools.in grants you a limited, non-exclusive, non-transferable, revocable license to access and use the Platform solely for personal, non-commercial purposes, subject to these Terms.
• 10.4 DMCA / Takedown Requests — If you believe any content on the Platform infringes your intellectual property rights, please send a formal notice to [email protected] with sufficient details for us to investigate and act appropriately.

11. Prohibited Conduct

By using the Platform, you agree that you will not engage in any of the following:

• Attempting to gain unauthorized access to any part of the Platform, its servers, databases, or connected systems.
• Using the Platform to collect, harvest, or store personal data of other users without authorization.
• Uploading or transmitting viruses, malware, or any other harmful code.
• Impersonating any school, institution, parent, or TopSchools.in staff member.
• Engaging in any conduct that disrupts, overloads, or impairs the Platform's infrastructure.
• Using the Platform for any illegal purpose under Indian law, including but not limited to fraud, harassment, defamation, or privacy violations.
• Attempting to reverse-engineer, decompile, or extract the source code of any part of the Platform.
• Posting false, misleading, or commercially motivated reviews.
• Circumventing any geo-restrictions, access controls, or security measures implemented by TopSchools.in.

Violations may result in immediate account termination and legal action where applicable.

12. Privacy & Data Protection

Your use of the Platform is also governed by our Privacy Policy, which is incorporated by reference into these Terms. By using the Platform, you consent to the collection, use, and sharing of your data as described in the Privacy Policy.

TopSchools.in complies with applicable Indian data protection laws, including the Information Technology Act, 2000, the IT (Amendment) Act, 2008, and the Digital Personal Data Protection Act, 2023 (DPDPA). We handle all personal data, including that of minors submitted in the context of school admissions, with strict confidentiality and purpose limitation.

We do not sell your personal data to third-party advertisers. Where data is shared (e.g., enquiry leads to schools), it is done solely in furtherance of the service you requested.

13. Disclaimer of Warranties

The Platform and all its content are provided on an "as is" and "as available" basis without any warranties of any kind, either express or implied. TopSchools.in does not warrant that:

• The Platform will be uninterrupted, error-free, or secure at all times.
• School information, fee data, rankings, or any other listing data will be accurate, complete, or current.
• Any particular school meets the expectations of the user based on its listed profile.
• Results obtained from using the Platform (such as admission outcomes) will meet any user's expectations.

To the maximum extent permitted by applicable law, TopSchools.in disclaims all implied warranties, including merchantability, fitness for a particular purpose, and non-infringement.

14. Limitation of Liability

To the fullest extent permitted by Indian law, TopSchools.in, its directors, employees, affiliates, agents, and partners shall not be liable for any indirect, incidental, special, consequential, or punitive damages arising out of or related to your use of the Platform, including but not limited to loss of data, admission rejection, financial loss, reputational harm, or loss of goodwill.

In no event shall TopSchools.in's total cumulative liability to you, for any cause whatsoever, exceed the greater of: (a) the amount you paid to TopSchools.in in the three months preceding the claim, or (b) INR 1,000 (One Thousand Rupees only).

This limitation applies regardless of the theory of liability — contract, tort, negligence, strict liability, or otherwise — and even if TopSchools.in has been advised of the possibility of such damage.

15. Third-Party Links & Services

The Platform may contain links to third-party websites, school websites, government portals, or external resources. These links are provided for convenience only. TopSchools.in does not endorse, control, or take responsibility for the content, privacy practices, or accuracy of any third-party sites. Accessing third-party links is entirely at your own risk.

If the Platform integrates third-party services such as payment gateways, Google Maps, analytics tools, or WhatsApp Business APIs, such services are governed by their respective third-party terms and privacy policies.

16. Modifications to the Platform & Terms

TopSchools.in reserves the right to update, modify, or discontinue any part of the Platform or these Terms at any time. For material changes to these Terms, we will provide at least 30 days' notice via email to registered users or a prominent notice on the Platform. Your continued use of the Platform after the effective date of any changes constitutes your acceptance of the revised Terms.

It is your responsibility to periodically review these Terms for updates. The most current version of the Terms will always be accessible at topschools.in/terms-of-service.

17. Indemnification

You agree to indemnify, defend, and hold harmless TopSchools.in and its officers, directors, employees, agents, and affiliates from and against any claims, liabilities, damages, losses, costs, or expenses (including reasonable legal fees) arising out of or relating to: your use or misuse of the Platform; your violation of these Terms; your violation of any third-party rights, including intellectual property or privacy rights; content you submit to the Platform; or any fraudulent, negligent, or unlawful conduct on your part.

18. Governing Law & Dispute Resolution

These Terms shall be governed by and construed in accordance with the laws of India, without regard to conflict of law principles. Any disputes arising from these Terms or your use of the Platform shall be subject to the exclusive jurisdiction of the courts located in Pune, Maharashtra, India.

• 18.1 Informal Resolution — Before initiating any legal proceeding, you agree to first attempt to resolve any dispute informally by writing to [email protected]. TopSchools.in will attempt to respond within 15 business days.
• 18.2 Arbitration — If informal resolution fails, disputes shall be referred to arbitration under the Arbitration and Conciliation Act, 1996 of India. The arbitration shall be conducted by a sole arbitrator mutually agreed upon, in the English language, and the seat of arbitration shall be Pune, Maharashtra.

19. School Partner Agreement (Additional Terms)

Schools and educational institutions that claim their listing or subscribe to Premium Services are additionally bound by the following:

• You represent that you are an authorized representative of the school with the legal capacity to enter into agreements on its behalf.
• All information provided by you for the school's listing shall be truthful and compliant with applicable educational regulations, including those of CBSE, ICSE, respective State Boards, or the MHRD/NEP framework.
• You acknowledge that TopSchools.in is a neutral directory platform and not a government-affiliated body.
• Any subscription fee paid does not guarantee any specific number of leads, rankings, or admission outcomes.
• School Partners may not instruct or incentivize users to leave fake positive reviews. Violation of these terms may result in removal from the platform without refund.

20. Force Majeure

TopSchools.in shall not be held liable for any delay or failure to perform its obligations due to circumstances beyond its reasonable control, including but not limited to natural disasters, acts of God, internet or network outages, cyberattacks, government orders, pandemics, or labor disputes. In such events, TopSchools.in will make commercially reasonable efforts to resume normal operations as soon as possible.

21. Severability & Waiver

If any provision of these Terms is found to be unenforceable or invalid by a court of competent jurisdiction, such provision shall be severed from the remaining Terms, which shall continue in full force and effect. The failure of TopSchools.in to enforce any right or provision of these Terms shall not constitute a waiver of that right or provision for any future breach.

22. Entire Agreement

These Terms, together with the Privacy Policy and any other policies incorporated by reference herein, constitute the entire agreement between you and TopSchools.in with respect to your use of the Platform, superseding any prior agreements, understandings, or representations.

23. Contact Information

For any questions, concerns, or notices regarding these Terms, you may contact us at:

Grievance Redressal Officer