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FOREWORD

University Grants Commission (UGC), in its constant endeavour to ensure quality and excellence in
higher education, has taken the initiative of “Quality Mandate” to continuously improve the quality
in Higher Education Institutions (HEIs) in India. Moving ahead in this direction, the “Quality
Mandate” of UGC, which emphasizes the importance of promoting high-quality research and creating
new knowledge by faculty members, established a Consortium for Academic Research and Ethics
(CARE) with the main task of improving the quality of research in Indian universities and to promote
academic and research integrity as well as publication ethics.

Focusing on both process and product, UGC, in its initiative, has come up with an invaluable book on
“Academic Integrity and Research Quality”. I am proud to present this book, a work of dedication and
commitment, which will be a torchbearer for the researchers and stakeholders of HEIs.

Research results must appear in the best places, bringing laurels and rewards to the researcher, the
institution, and the country. This book does not merely focus on a regulatory set of rules but highlights
norms and best practices that all of us involved in tertiary education, must adopt. It is a valuable
collection of writings from serious practitioners, administrators, and observers of the research
ecosystem in Indian HEIs. The 16 well-researched and written articles cover the basic parameters of
ethics, publishing codes, and principles of research across diverse disciplines.

I have no doubt, that as a community of researchers, if we can implement and practice the ethics,
principles, ideas, and ideals that appear in this volume, it will change the way we practice and publicize
our research work. This volume is one of the remarkable initiatives of the UGC and I take personal
and professional pride that India’s highest regulatory authority has brought out this volume.

The practice of good research produces good results. How we undertake research, find out the best
places to publish, how best we can present our work — these are concerns that all of us share. We
need to strengthen research methodologies, reject dubious methods, and identify the best modes of
generating quality.

I thank all the esteemed contributors to this book for their valuable cooperation and contribution.
I also take this opportunity to acknowledge the significant contribution and sincere efforts made by
Prof. Bhushan Patwardhan, former Vice-Chairman, UGC, Prof. Rajnish Jain, Secretary, UGC, and
Dr. Archana Thakur, Joint Secretary, UGC to successfully publish this book during the COVID-19
pandemic period.

My best wishes to all researchers.

Prof. D.P. Singh
Chairman,
University Grants Commission

New Delhi
December, 2021

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