NAAC debars varsity in A.P. for 5 years from accreditation

NAAC debars varsity in A.P. for 5 years from accreditation

The case involves the CBI probe into the alleged bribery of a NAAC team by the Guntur-based Koneru Lakshmaiah Education Foundation; the council also debars all 7 members of the team

The Hindu Bureau  09.02.2025

Bengaluru

The National Assessment and Accreditation Council (NAAC), the autonomous accreditation body for higher education institutes, on Saturday announced that its executive committee has decided to not only cancel the current process of accreditation of the Koneru Lakshmaiah Education Foundation (KLEF) in Guntur, Andhra Pradesh, but also debar its university for five years from applying for accreditation.

It has also decided to debar all the seven members of the peer team for lifetime in assessment or any other activities of NAAC with immediate effect.

The case involves the CBI investigation into the alleged bribery of a NAAC team by the KLEF in exchange for an A++ rating for its university.

“In addition, it is decided to review the recent visits to HEIs (higher education institutions) by any of the seven members for which the results are not declared. The results of such HEIs will be withheld, and the Standing Committee of NAAC may critically review before declaring the results. In addition, it is decided that the visits of last one year will be carefully analysed and put up to EC for further necessary action,” said NAAC in a statement.

“As per the Dr. Radhakrishnan Committee recommendations, NAAC has proposed to launch the Basic (Binary) Accreditation in April/May 2025 followed by Maturity-based Graded Levels (MBGL). Special committees are working on the preparation of framework and methodology for MBGL. It is observed that NAAC’s Peer Review system has faced a challenging situation due to the recent CBI case. These are undesirable to the higher education system, and NAAC being a quality assurance agency is determined to eliminate such practices through definitive actions,” said NAAC, adding that it is planning to take additional steps to refine the system by eliminating the scope for unfair practices in the system.