The National Institutional Ranking Framework has become a strong option compared to foreign ranking agencies, says BITS Pilani Group Vice Chancellor V Ramgopal Rao. NIRF has grown a lot in the past 10 years, but still faces some problems that need to be fixed.
New Delhi, 14 Sep 2025
The National Institutional Ranking Framework has become a strong option compared to foreign ranking agencies, says BITS Pilani Group Vice Chancellor V Ramgopal Rao. NIRF has grown a lot in the past 10 years, but still faces some problems that need to be fixed.
NIRF Gains Official Support
The NIRF ranking is announced by the Government of India. This gives it official support. Other rankings like QS or Times Higher Education are done by private companies. They focus a lot on how people see colleges because that is how they make money. NIRF has changed and improved its ways of measuring colleges over the years. But it still has some issues to solve.
Challenges in Research Evaluation
Rao thinks the way NIRF measures research needs to change. He says the number of research papers and how often they are mentioned are counted twice. This can lead to problems. Some colleges might be mentioning their own work too much. Rao suggests checking the data more carefully, especially if a college shows a big jump in its ranking. This will help make sure the rankings show the real situation.
The self-reported data, I believe, is a big concern because sometimes the results that come out of it are unexpected and do not reflect the reality on the ground.
The next NIRF rankings will be watched closely to see if these concerns are addressed. Follow The Rising News for more verified updates.
Updated 14 Sep 2025, 18:12 IST; source: link
