IIT Madras tops NIRF for 7th year; IISc best university

IIT Madras tops NIRF for 7th year; IISc best university 

Manash Gohain & Meghna Dhulia TNN 05.09.2025

New Delhi : IIT Madras has topped the National Institutional Ranking Framework (NIRF) 2025 in the “overall” category for the seventh straight year while IISc Bengaluru has been ranked India’s best university for the tenth year in a row. IIT-Madras also led the engineering, innovation, and sustainable development goals (SDG) lists. 

“Being a topper consistently is the result of a collective, cohesive and focused team effort,” IIT Madras director V Kamakoti said. For the first time, a private university — Manipal Academy of Higher Education (MAHE), Karnataka — entered the top three in the “university” category. 

In the colleges list, Delhi University institutions continued to dominate, with Hindu College at No. 1 and 31 in the top 100. A record 7,692 institutions submitted 14,163 applications this year across 17 categories. Announcing the tenth edition of the NIRF on Thursday, education minister Dharmendra Pradhan said, “The cornerstone of the India rankings has been its success in cultivating a culture of data governance within higher education institutions ... enabling internal benchmarking and long-term strategic planning.” “At the macro level, this data serves as a valuable resource for national policy formulation and sectoral analysis. A multi-layered data validation is undertaken ... scrutinised for inconsistencies, anomalies and potential inflation,” he said. In the “overall” category, IISc-Bengaluru retained second place, followed by IIT Bombay and IIT Delhi, both holding their positions.

Saveetha drops to second place in dental, CMC remains 3rd in medical Among universities, IISc-Bengaluru stayed at No. 1 and JNU, New Delhi, at No. 2. MAHE, which first entered the top 10 in 2019, continued its steady rise to be ranked third this year. Delhi-based Jamia Millia Islamia slipped one slot to fourth. 

After the inaugural 2016 rankings, BITS-Pilani returned to the top 10 at seventh position, followed by Amrita Vishwa Vidyapeetham, Coimbatore, as the third private university in the top 10. In colleges, DU’s Miranda House retained second spot, with Hansraj College and Kirori Mal College next. St Stephen’s College, third last year, slipped to fifth. In engineering, nine IITs figured in the top 10. IIT-Madras led the category for the tenth consecutive year, with IIT-Delhi and IIT-Bombay again at second and third. NIT-Tiruchirappalli was the only non-IIT in the top 10. 

The framework evaluates institutions on five groups of parameters — Teaching, Learning & Resources (TLR); Research & Professional Practice (RP); Graduation Outcome (GO); Outreach & Inclusivity (OI); and Perception (PR) — with ranks assigned on total scores across these. 

In management, IIM-Ahmedabad stayed at No. 1, followed by IIM-Bangalore and IIM-Kozhikode. Seven IIMs made it to the top 10, with IITDelhi the only technology institute on the list. MDI-Gurgaon and XLRI-Jamshedpur were ninth and tenth. In medical, AIIMS-Delhi was first, followed by PGIMER-Chandigarh and CMCVellore — all three retaining their positions. 

In dental, AIIMS-Delhi topped the list, while Saveetha Institute of Medical and Technical Sciences, Chennai, slipped to second. In pharmacy, Jamia Hamdard retained the top spot, while BITS-Pilani rose to second from third last year. In law, NLSIU-Bengaluru, NLU-Delhi, and Nalsar-Hyderabad were first, second and third, respectively. For research institutions, IIScBengaluru ranked first, followed by IIT-Madras. Among open universities, IGNOU led, with Karnataka State Open University (Mysuru) in second place.

TN univs, colleges slip down India Rankings ’25

TN univs, colleges slip down India Rankings ’25 

No V-C In 14 Varsities, Tough Competition Cost TN dearly

Ragu.Raman@timesofindia.com 05.09.2025

The India Rankings (formerly NIRF rankings) of colleges and universities released on Thursday reflect the plight of state universities, which have been functioning without vice-chancellors (V-Cs) and with high number of vacancies in faculty positions. While the premier Anna University slipped seven ranks to 20th in the university category, Bharathiar University in Coimbatore and Madurai Kamaraj University slipped 20 places and 22 places to 46th rank and 85th rank, respectively. Algappa University offered the sole consolation, moving up by three places to 44th rank, while Bharthidasan University retained its previous year rank of 36. The biggest slide was reserved for Periyar University in Salem, which fell from 56th rank last year to 94th rank. Anna University also lost its top position to Jadavpur University in the state universities category. 

Amrita Vishwa Vidhyapeetham in Coimbatore, which is the only institution from Tamil Nadu to feature among top 10 in universities category, also slipped by a rank to 8th position this year. University of Madras improved one rank from 39th last year to 38th this year in the university category 

“All the state universities have been functioning with significant number of vacancies in faculty positions. It will affect the research output and teacher-student ratio,” said P Duraisamy, former V-C, University of Madras. As many as 14 out of 22 state universities have been functioning without V-Cs due to the tussle between the governor and state govt. For example, the scores for research publications and quality of publications for Anna University has come down by three points this year which has affected its overall score. The overall score has come down from 63.85 points to 61.22 this year compared to last year. Anna University has more than 400 vacancies on its four campuses. “State govt has granted permission to fill 288 of them. It would help improve the —ranking next year,” said Anna University registrar J Prakash. He pointed out that the university improved its ranking in the innovation category from 10th rank last year to 9th rank. For the first time, no college from Chennai city featured among the top 10 in colleges’ category. 

Loyola College dropped from 8th rank to 14th rank. Two colleges from Coimbatore, PSGR Krishnammal College for Women and PSG Arts and Science College, were ranked 9th and 10th in the same category. College principals said the colleges did not get high ranks despite having better scores compared to last year. PSGR Krishnammal College secured a place in the top 10 rankings for the sixth consecutive year. Principal, P B Harathi said, “There are two parameters that we need to strengthen, one is research and the other is perception. If we improve on these two areas, we will certainly crack the top 5 positions in the coming years.” “Our overall score improved from 67.4 to 70.6. However, our college has slipped two places to 16th rank due to tough competition,” Madras Christian College principal Paul Wilson said. 

The number of colleges taking part in the colleges’ category has increased from 3,371 last year to 4,030 this year. In the engineering category, top colleges such as SRM Institute of Technology (SRMIST) and Vellore Institute of Technology also slipped this year. SRMIST slipped a place to 14th rank, while VIT slipped five places to 16th rank in this category. 

Among the medical colleges, Christian Medical College retained its third position, while Madras Medical College slipped six places to 16th rank this year. JSS College of Pharmacy in Ooty retained its fourth position, while Saveetha Institute of Medical and Technical Sciences slipped a place to number two among dental colleges. NIT Trichy has slipped a place to ninth in the architecture and planning category. In the newly introduced sustainable development goals institutions category, SRM Institute of Science and Technology bagged the fourth rank, while IIT Madras received first rank.

NEWS TODAY 04.09.2025

 

NEWS TODAY 03.09.2025

 

3 deemed univs get 150 more MBBS seats

3 deemed univs get 150 more MBBS seats

TIMES NEWS NETWORK 03.09.2025

Chennai : Three deemed universities in Tamil Nadu — Sri Lalithambigai Medical College and Hospital, Bharat Medical College and Hospital, and JR Medical College and Hospital — have been granted permission by National Medical Commission to add 50 additional MBBS seats each, taking the tally of additional seats to 150, Centre has told the state. 

While there are no new govt medical colleges in TN, the Centre will release the list for additional seats in self-financing medical colleges affiliated with Tamil Nadu Dr MGR Medical University soon. “These seats will be added to the seat matrix. Students who opted for upgrade in round 1 and students who will take part in further rounds will have more options to choose from,” said a senior official. Overall, the National Medical Commission approved around 1,000 seats in new govt medical colleges in states such as Assam, MP, UP, Telangana, and Rajasthan; an almost similar number of additional seats in existing medical colleges across the country; and around 500 seats in deemed universities.

NEWS TODAY 02.09.2025

 

HC Quashes MBBS Student's Suspension In NEET Malpractice Case, Says NMC Can Act Post-Trial If Guilty

HC Quashes MBBS Student's Suspension In NEET Malpractice Case, Says NMC Can Act Post-Trial If Guilty 

Written By Barsha MisraPublished On 26 Aug 2025 3:22 PM 

Madras High Court

Chennai: Granting relief to an MBBS student, who was suspended after being framed with charges of malpractice in the National Eligibility-Entrance Test Undergraduate (NEET-UG) 2024 examination, the Madras High Court recently allowed him to attend classes and appear in the examinations.

The HC bench, comprising Justice C. Kumarappan, opined that suspending a student while the trial is pending would affect his right to pursue studies and jeopardise his future.

However, the bench made it clear that if the petitioner is ultimately held guilty in the trial, the National Medical Commission (NMC) can take an appropriate decision in accordance with law, which may include cancellation of his admission to the medical course.

The petitioner is currently pursuing an MBBS course at the Government Thiruvarur Medical College. He was issued with a suspension order on 15.04.2025 by the Dean of the medical college, allegedly without being given any opportunity of hearing on the grounds that he was framed with the charges of malpractice in the NEET UG 2024 examination. He is currently on bail granted by the Patna High Court.

It was argued by the petitioner's counsel that since the petitioner was arrested and remanded to judicial custody, the Dean had issued the suspension order based on the letter issued by the National Medical Commission (NMC).

Further, the petitioner's counsel submitted that if the petitioner, who was granted bail, was not allowed to attend classes, it would prejudice his education and would affect his eligibility to participate in the examinations. Further, the petitioner's counsel claimed that the petitioner is innocent and was falsely implicated in the criminal case.

The petitioner's counsel relied on a judgment from the Rajasthan High Court in the case of Vikas Vishnoi vs. Controller of Examinations, Rajasthan University of Health Science, Jaipur and Others, where the Court had allowed an accused to continue his MBBS courses subject to certain conditions.

On the other hand, the counsel for NMC and the counsel for DMER, and the Dean and Vice Principal of Government Thiruvarur Medical College strongly objected to these contentions and submitted that the petitioner was arrested on serious allegations of malpractice in the NEET UG 2024 examination and an investigation was currently in progress by the Central Bureau of Investigation.

They further submitted that the petitioner was suspended based on NMC's recommendations and the question of reviving the suspension order would not arise at all, since the conduct of the petitioner was not only unethical but also unbecoming of a student.

After taking note of the submissions, the HC bench opined,

"...this Court is of the considered opinion that as rightly held by the Rajasthan High Court, suspending the petitioner, who is a student, while the trial is pending would affect the petitioner's right to pursue his studies and would jeopardize his future. Moreover, if the petitioner is ultimately acquitted, he would suffer the irreversible and irreparable loss of precious years of his studies." "The petitioner being a student, this Court would like to have a soft approach, though the allegations against the petitioner are serious in nature. Therefore, suspending the petitioner from College would effectively presume the petitioner guilty and amount to punishment before a final determination by the Competent Court," it observed. Accordingly, the bench granted the following relief:

(1) The petitioner's suspension order dated 15.04.2025 passed by the 5 th respondent-college is hereby quashed. The suspension is treated as quashed from the date of this order. The respondent college shall forthwith allow the petitioner to attend classes.

(2) If the petitioner fulfills the requisite attendance criteria, he shall be allowed to appear in the ensuing examination in accordance with law. The petitioner shall be allowed to complete the course, but the respondents shall not issue him a degree or register him unless the trial is concluded and he is acquitted of the charges.

(3) If the petitioner is held guilty in the trial, the National Medical Commission (NMC) shall be free to take an appropriate decision in accordance with law, which may include cancellation of his admission to the medical course. It is needless to state that if the petitioner is acquitted, he shall be issued a degree as soon as he is acquitted.