The event, titled “NIRF rankings decoded: what’s new, what matters,” will begin at 5:00 p.m. IST and will be moderated by M. Kalyanaraman, head of The Hindu’s education vertical. Registration is free, and participants who submit the three best questions will win a complimentary online subscription to the newspaper.
NIRF’s methodology ranks institutions across the country using five broad parameters: Teaching, Learning and Resources; Research and Professional Practices; Graduation Outcomes; Outreach and Inclusivity; and Perception. These metrics are intended to provide a composite picture of institutional performance.
Critics, however, argue that the framework fails to capture the quality of teaching and the holistic development of students. They say the emphasis on quantifiable outputs can skew internal priorities, prompting colleges to focus on activities that boost scores rather than on broader educational goals, potentially compromising academic integrity.
Stakeholders are calling for a re‑examination of how higher‑education institutions are evaluated, urging reforms that would promote equity and overall quality rather than merely rewarding quantity.
The Hindu’s panel will feature four experts: Prof. Rajeev Sangal, the first regular Director of IIT (BHU) Varanasi and former IIT Kanpur professor who designed the Universal Human Values course; Prof. O.R.S. Rao, Chancellor of ICFAI University, Sikkim and veteran of higher‑education governance; Achal Agrawal, founder of the non‑profit India Research Watch and advocate for research integrity; and Moumita Koley, senior research analyst at the DST‑Center for Policy Research, IISc, who works on equitable access to scientific knowledge.
By bringing together policymakers, academics and civil‑society voices, the webinar aims to foster a nuanced discussion that could influence future revisions of the NIRF system and shape how Indian universities balance rankings with broader educational objectives.