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IISc retains its position as the top Indian institution in the 2023 THE World University rankings In the most recent round of Times Higher Education (THE) rankings, which the majority of Indian Institutes of Technology (IITs) have boycotted for the third year in a row due to concerns about transparency, the Indian Institute of Science (IISc) has maintained its top spot among Indian institutions. The IISc is ranked in the range of 251-300, making it the top Indian institution overall. According to a statement released by THE, the University of Oxford has emerged as the top institution globally among 1,799 universities from 104 countries. The Shoolini University of Biotechnology and Management Sciences (351-400 overall), which debuted in the rankings, has grabbed the second position among Indian institutions. In the universities category of the National Institutional Ranking Framework (NIRF) 2022, the Himachal Pradesh-based private university is ranked 96th. However, JSS Academy of Higher Education and Research, another private university based in Karnataka, and Shoolini University share the same spot among Indian institutions. Algappa University, a public university in Tamil Nadu, placed third in India (401-500). IIT Ropar received the second place in the Indian category last year, but it has dropped to sixth place this year and to the 501-600 band globally from the 351-400 band last year. The parameters used to rate the institutions include teaching (30%), research (30%), citations (30%), international outlook (7.5%), and industry outcome (2.5 percent). A “reputational survey” has 15 percent weight in both teaching and research. Over 121 million citations from over 15.5 million research publications were analysed for this year’s ranking, which also includes survey responses from 40,000 experts worldwide. JSS Academy of Higher Education and Research, Shoolini University of Biotechnology and Management Sciences, and Alagappa University rounded out the top three Indian institutions.

In accordance with suggestions made in the National Education Policy 2020, the University Grants Commission (UGC) is streamlining the procedure by which colleges achieve autonomous status. Prof. M. Jagadesh Kumar, chairperson of the UGC, stated that the Commission has adopted draft regulations in this regard, which will be made available to the public for stakeholder feedback by Tuesday. The proposed changes are largely intended to speed up the process of obtaining autonomy status and link it to NAAC ratings. For instance, at the moment, proposals for autonomy are initially reviewed by expert committees through site visits. However, under the proposed changes, on-site visits won’t be necessary anymore. “A standing committee of the UGC shall examine the application of the college for conferment of autonomous status. The approval/rejection letters may be issued on the basis of the decision of the standing committee. The decisions may be ratified by the committee subsequently,” according to the draught regulations. Additionally, if the concerned college receives grade A accreditation from the NAAC, the autonomous status—which is currently awarded initially for a term of 10 years—will now be automatically extended for another 10 years. For at least three programmes with a minimum score of 675, technical colleges will need NBA accreditation. Colleges that have operated as autonomous units for a continuous period of 15 years will be granted the status permanently once the revised regulations are passed, and they won’t need to reapply as long as they maintain their high NAAC or NBA ratings. In the US, there are about 500 autonomous colleges. According to the NEP, “it is envisaged that over a period of time every college would develop into either an autonomous degree-granting college, or a constituent college of a university – in the latter case, it would be fully a part of the university.” According to Prof. Kumar, the proposed changes were made after an expert committee reviewed the existing regulations. “These regulations will also provide freedom to the autonomous colleges to determine and prescribe their own courses of study and syllabi, and restructure and redesign the courses to suit local needs, make it skill oriented and in consonance with the job requirements. Further, the autonomous college may prescribe their own admission rules, evolve methods of assessment,” he stated.

The National Talent Search Examination (NTSE) has been postponed until further orders, according to a recent announcement from the National Council of Educational Research and Training (NCERT). Since NTSE was not approved after March 31, 2021, the programme has been put on hold till further notice, according to an official notice from the NCERT. The Ministry of Education (MOE) of the Government of India entirely funds the central sector programme known as the National Talent Search Scheme. The NTS scheme is implemented by NCERT. The scheme was approved till March 31, 2021. The scheme’s further implementation in its present form has been postponed until further orders because it has not been approved. “This is for the information of all concerned,” the official notice reads. Recently, the NTSE 2021 was held on October 24, 2021, at 68 exam centers across the nation, and the final results were made public on February 18 on the official NCERT website, ncert.nic.in. On February 9, 2022, the Council made the provisional results and the OMR sheet available on the official NCERT website. The Ministry of Education (MOE) of the Government of India (Gol) entirely funds the NTSE scholarship programme, which is administered by the NCERT. Every year, two phases of the scholarship test are held: stage 1 (state level) and stage 2. (national level). The second stage is hosted by NCERT, whilst the first stage is run by the states.