The National Assessment and Accreditation Council’s (NAAC), an autonomous body that falls under the purview of the University Grants Commission (UGC), has been accused of irregularities in its functioning. SC Sharma, director, NAAC has refuted claims of irregularities within the organisation and asserted that the entire operational process is sound, transparent, and automated, according to an official statement. “The system’s integrity remains intact due to its decentralised nature, transparency, and accessibility to stakeholders via a user-friendly portal and dashboard throughout all stages of the assessment and accreditation process,” Sharma said.
There are four steps involved in the process of awarding grades to higher education Institutions that are fool-proof. Firstly, a peer team report, including a grade, is submitted. Secondly, the standing committee, a sub-committee of the executive committee, scrutinises the report. Thirdly, NAAC declares the results. Lastly, the executive committee ratifies the results. As a result, there is no chance of manipulating the process, ensuring the integrity of the grade awarding system, the NAAC director, explained.
Furthermore, before conducting a Peer Team visit, the assessors involved in the accreditation process are required to provide a written declaration of their adherence to the code of conduct, ethical standards, and their lack of any conflict of interest. This pool of assessors is carefully selected to ensure the integrity and objectivity of the accreditation process, as per NAAC.
“The NAAC ensures that the Peer Team experts are not from the same state of HEIs. The NAAC also follows a due protocol for designating different portfolios of the Peer Team i.e. the Chairperson, Member Coordinator and Member(s),” he added.