UGC Scraps CARE List, New Research Publication Guidelines Unveiled

UGC Scraps CARE List: In a landmark move, the University Grants Commission (UGC) has discontinued its UGC CARE journal listing, ushering in a decentralized approach to academic publishing. This decision empowers Higher Education Institutions (HEIs) to establish their own mechanisms for evaluating peer-reviewed journals, promoting greater academic freedom and flexibility. The UGC has provided suggestive parameters to guide institutions in this transition, emphasizing ethical publishing practices, impact factors, and citation records.

This shift addresses longstanding criticisms of the UGC-CARE system, including over-centralization, lack of transparency, and the inadvertent inclusion of predatory journals. Stakeholders are encouraged to provide feedback on the proposed parameters by February 25, 2025, marking a collaborative effort to refine India’s academic publishing standards. Let’s understand the concept of CARE and how UGC’s move will impact research through this.

Why Did UGC Scrap the CARE List?

The scraping of CARE List by UGC is a bold move that aims to enhance research integrity and align India’s publishing standards with global best practices. Here is the list of issues with the CARE:

• Predatory Journals: Many low-quality, pay-to-publish journals infiltrated the UGC CARE List, affecting research credibility.
• Lack of Transparency: The UGC journal evaluation policy lacked clear guidelines for journal selection and removal, leading to inconsistencies.
• Over-Centralization: The system was slow and bureaucratic, delaying updates and making quality control ineffective.
• Global Standards Alignment: The move aims to match international academic publishing norms, ensuring ethical and high-impact research.
• Empowering Institutions: Universities will now have greater autonomy in evaluating and approving research journals, fostering academic freedom.

Also Check: Top 10 Mistakes to Avoid in UGC NET Exam for Higher Scores

What is the UGC CARE List?

The UGC CARE List (Consortium for Academic and Research Ethics) was a curated list of approved journals maintained by the University Grants Commission (UGC) to ensure quality research publications in India. It aimed to filter out predatory journals and promote ethical publishing practices. It has been discontinued due to concerns over journal credibility, transparency issues, and bureaucratic inefficiencies.

New Research Publication Guidelines by UGC

With the UGC scraps CARE List decision, journal evaluation is now decentralized, giving Higher Education Institutions (HEIs) full control over approving peer-reviewed journals. This shift enhances transparency, research integrity, and global alignment.

Key Changes in UGC Journal Evaluation Criteria

• Ethical Publishing: Strict compliance with ethical publishing standards in India, banning plagiarism and fake peer reviews.
• Peer-Review Standards: Only UGC peer-reviewed journal guidelines compliant publications will be recognized.
• Impact Factor & Citations: Journals must show strong research impact, citations, and indexing.
• Institutional Autonomy: HEIs now evaluate journals independently, ensuring quality-driven research without bureaucratic delays.

This new UGC journal evaluation criteria ensures credible, high-impact research publications, elevating India’s academic publishing to global standards.

Impact on Researchers and Universities

The UGC scraps CARE List decision brings a major shift in academic publishing, directly affecting PhD scholars, faculty members, and institutions. While it enhances research quality, it also poses new challenges.

What It Means for Researchers & Institutions

• PhD Scholars: Must carefully choose recognized, peer-reviewed journals as per UGC PhD research guidelines to ensure thesis acceptance.
• Faculty Members: More responsibility in academic journal selection in India, ensuring publications align with ethical and impact-driven standards.
• Universities & HEIs: Gain autonomy in evaluating journals but must establish robust review mechanisms to prevent predatory publications.

Pros & Cons of the Decentralized System

The impact of UGC CARE List removal pushes academia towards global publishing standards, but scholars must stay updated to navigate the new system effectively. Here are the pros and cons of the decentralized system:

• Better Research Integrity: Eliminates predatory journals, promoting credible, high-impact research.
• Greater Flexibility: Institutions can develop their own journal evaluation frameworks.
• Inconsistencies: Without UGC’s central approval, quality checks may vary across institutions.
• Added Responsibility: Researchers must verify journal credibility independently.

Expert Opinions & Stakeholder Reactions Over UGC Decision

The UGC policy changes 2025 have sparked mixed reactions among academicians and researchers.

• UGC Chairman M. Jagadesh Kumar – Calls it a move to restore academic freedom and let HEIs evaluate journals independently.
• Supporters of UGC policy changes 2025: They believe it will enhance research quality in Indian universities and reduce predatory journal influence.
• Critics like Rajesh Jha argue that it creates policy instability, leaving institutions struggling with academic publishing reforms in India.

Next Steps for Researchers

With the UGC scraps CARE List decision, scholars must adapt to a new journal selection process to ensure their research meets UGC’s evolving standards.

How to Publish in UGC-Approved Journals?

• Verify Journal Credibility: Choose peer-reviewed, indexed journals that follow ethical publishing standards.
• Follow Institutional Guidelines: HEIs will now set internal evaluation criteria for journal selection.
• Check Impact Factor & Citations: Prioritize journals with strong research impact and global recognition.

UGC Feedback Process & Future Developments

• UGC invites feedback from scholars and institutions to refine the future of academic publishing in India.
• Researchers should stay updated on new journal evaluation frameworks introduced by universities.
• Expect more reforms in research guidelines, ensuring quality-driven, globally accepted publications.

UGC’s Decision Key Takeaways

• UGC scraps CARE List to decentralize journal evaluation and improve research integrity.
• HEIs now decide journal approval, ensuring greater flexibility but also added responsibility.
• Scholars must verify journals independently, following UGC PhD research guidelines and peer-review standards.
• UGC seeks feedback to refine the future of academic publishing in India.
• Strong evaluation frameworks are crucial to prevent predatory journals and maintain research quality.

UGC Scraps CARE List FAQs