The UGC CARE (Consortium for Academic and Research Ethics) is an initiative by the University Grants Commission (UGC), India, to improve the quality of academic publications. It was launched in 2018 to fight unethical practices, fake journals, and non-transparent publishing by maintaining an officially verified list of peer-reviewed and credible journals across disciplines.
This curated journal list serves as a trusted reference for:
Before the launch of UGC CARE, UGC maintained a list of “approved journals” which unfortunately included many predatory and low-quality publications. These journals often lacked basic peer-review processes, misleading indexing claims, and transparency.
The UGC CARE list was introduced to:
📢 Your Research, Our Platform — If you’re looking for a journal that aligns with UGC-CARE, Scopus, Web of Science-WOS standards, submit your paper to IJNRD, which fully complies with the latest UGC CARE guidelines.
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The UGC CARE List was significantly updated under the 2025 Peer-Reviewed Journal Policy to ensure high-quality scholarly output. Key highlights include:
✅ New Focus Areas:
The International Journal of Novel Research and Development (IJNRD) is proud to announce that it now fully adheres to the latest 2025 UGC CARE Peer-Reviewed Journal Policy. With a strong commitment to transparency, academic integrity, and quality publishing standards, IJNRD has implemented all the required changes set forth by the UGC CARE Committee.
As a result, IJNRD is now recognized as a reliable and credible platform for researchers, scholars, educators, and academic professionals who are seeking to publish original, peer-reviewed work in a journal that supports ethical publishing and rigorous editorial practices.
IJNRD now stands out by:
This update strengthens IJNRD’s role as a trusted publication partner in the academic community.
📢 Your Research, Our Platform — If you’re looking for a journal that aligns with UGC-CARE, Scopus, Web of Science-WOS standards, submit your paper to IJNRD, which fully complies with the latest UGC CARE guidelines.
👉 Visit: www.ijnrd.org | 📩 Email: editor@ijnrd.org | 📄 Submit Your Article Today
For transparency and researcher confidence, IJNRD provides the following publicly accessible documents related to its UGC CARE policy compliance:
Before the establishment of the UGC-CARE (Consortium for Academic and Research Ethics) initiative, the UGC Approved Journals List—maintained until 2018—was widely criticized for including numerous low-quality, questionable, and predatory journals. Many of these publications lacked:
As a result, these journals compromised the academic reputation of Indian research, allowing substandard work to be cited and used in promotions, Ph.D. evaluations, and academic assessments.
To preserve research integrity and promote global academic standards, the University Grants Commission (UGC) officially discontinued the old "Approved Journals" list in 2019. It introduced the UGC-CARE List in collaboration with top universities, indexing experts, and subject committees to create a more reliable, transparent, and ethical academic publishing ecosystem.
The UGC-CARE List was launched with a mission to transform the Indian academic publishing landscape. Its key objectives include:
📢 Your Research, Our Platform — If you’re looking for a journal that aligns with UGC-CARE, Scopus, Web of Science-WOS standards, submit your paper to IJNRD, which fully complies with the latest UGC CARE guidelines.
👉 Visit: www.ijnrd.org | 📩 Email: editor@ijnrd.org | 📄 Submit Your Article Today
The UGC-CARE List is an officially curated, credible, and continuously reviewed index of journals recognized for academic quality and ethical publishing. It serves as the go-to reference list for Indian researchers, especially for:
Journals that have undergone evaluation and qualified through UGC-CARE protocols based on feedback from universities and subject experts.
Journals that are already indexed in globally recognized databases like:
These journals are automatically considered compliant with UGC-CARE due to their inclusion in international indexing services.
📢 Your Research, Our Platform — If you’re looking for a journal that aligns with UGC-CARE, Scopus, Web of Science-WOS standards, submit your paper to IJNRD, which fully complies with the latest UGC CARE guidelines.
👉 Visit: www.ijnrd.org | 📩 Email: editor@ijnrd.org | 📄 Submit Your Article Today
Always verify the current UGC-CARE status of a journal before submission using the official portal: https://ugccare.unipune.ac.in. Submitting to journals not listed in UGC-CARE may result in non-recognition of your research work for academic or career advancement.
When identifying a valid journal, ensure it meets the following criteria:
Follow these simple steps to verify if a journal is listed:
Publishing in UGC CARE-listed journals ensures:
📢 Your Research, Our Platform — If you’re looking for a journal that aligns with UGC-CARE, Scopus, Web of Science-WOS standards, submit your paper to IJNRD, which fully complies with the latest UGC CARE guidelines.
👉 Visit: www.ijnrd.org | 📩 Email: editor@ijnrd.org | 📄 Submit Your Article Today
In recent years, the academic publishing ecosystem has seen a disturbing rise in cloned or fake journals, posing a serious threat to genuine research and academic credibility.
Cloned journals are fraudulent imitations of legitimate and reputed journals. These deceptive platforms copy the name, ISSN (International Standard Serial Number), logo, editorial board names, and even the design or content structure of well-established journals to mislead authors and extract publication fees.
In many cases, these clones operate using slightly altered website URLs or mimic the domain names of authentic journals to appear credible at first glance.
Publishing in a cloned journal can:
To protect the integrity of Indian and global research, the University Grants Commission (UGC) has taken proactive steps to fight this malpractice.
UGC-CARE has identified and published lists of cloned journals that were falsely claiming to be part of the UGC-CARE List. These are divided into two categories:
📎 UGC advises researchers to refer to the official UGC-CARE portal regularly for updates on these lists before submitting their work.
📢 Your Research, Our Platform — If you’re looking for a journal that aligns with UGC-CARE, Scopus, Web of Science-WOS standards, submit your paper to IJNRD, which fully complies with the latest UGC CARE guidelines.
👉 Visit: www.ijnrd.org | 📩 Email: editor@ijnrd.org | 📄 Submit Your Article Today
Before submitting your research article, always verify the legitimacy of the journal by following these steps:
Ensure that the journal has a legitimate, secured (HTTPS) domain name, with complete and transparent information about:
Be cautious if the journal:
Cloned journals prey on the pressure researchers face to publish quickly. Don’t fall for shortcuts — always validate, verify, and investigate before you submit.
Publishing in a cloned journal is not just a financial risk; it’s a threat to your academic reputation and the integrity of scholarly research.
📢 Your Research, Our Platform — If you’re looking for a journal that aligns with UGC-CARE, Scopus, Web of Science-WOS standards, submit your paper to IJNRD, which fully complies with the latest UGC CARE guidelines.
👉 Visit: www.ijnrd.org | 📩 Email: editor@ijnrd.org | 📄 Submit Your Article Today
| Subject | No. of Journals |
|---|---|
| Sciences | 422 |
| Social Sciences | 347 |
| Arts & Humanities | 383 |
| Multidisciplinary | 56 |
| Indian Languages | 248 |
📢 Your Research, Our Platform — If you’re looking for a journal that aligns with UGC-CARE, Scopus, Web of Science-WOS standards, submit your paper to IJNRD, which fully complies with the latest UGC CARE guidelines.
👉 Visit: www.ijnrd.org | 📩 Email: editor@ijnrd.org | 📄 Submit Your Article Today
📢 Your Research, Our Platform — If you’re looking for a journal that aligns with UGC-CARE, Scopus, Web of Science-WOS standards, submit your paper to IJNRD, which fully complies with the latest UGC CARE guidelines.
👉 Visit: www.ijnrd.org | 📩 Email: editor@ijnrd.org | 📄 Submit Your Article Today
The UGC CARE List of Journals is a cornerstone for maintaining academic quality in India. By ensuring transparency, ethical standards, and international recognition, it provides a reliable framework for researchers to publish with confidence.
Before publishing—verify. During submission—be ethical. After publication—stay informed.
