Srinagar, May 22: The University of Kashmir is finally set to host the National Assessment and Accreditation Council (NAAC) peer team for a crucial inspection that will determine its future accreditation status. The visit is expected to take place on any date between May 28 and June 6, according to university officials.
“Yes, the NAAC visit can take place on any day during that window. All preparations are in place and we are ready to host the NAAC team,” said Dr. Naseer Iqbal, Registrar of the University of Kashmir.
The visit, originally due by May 15, was delayed owing to security-related developments in Jammu and Kashmir and other parts of the country. The university currently holds an A+ grade, granted in May 2019, with the five-year validity set to expire this month.
The visit, long overdue, got stuck in technical hitches that entailed the NAAC’s refinement of the framework and methodology for the new Maturity-Based Graded Levels (MBGL) assessment system. The NAAC, an autonomous body under the University Grants Commission, assesses and accredits higher education institutions across India.
A senior KU official confirmed receiving formal communication from NAAC outlining a “window of visit” between May 28–30 and June 1–6, saying, “We are fully prepared to receive the NAAC peer team.”
In anticipation of the visit, Vice Chancellor Prof. Nilofer Khan chaired a high-level emergency meeting with top university officials, Heads of Departments, and other stakeholders. “The preparations were reviewed in detail and necessary instructions were issued to ensure a smooth and successful assessment,” a KU official said.
As per the officials, VC passed the directions to all ranks to ensure smooth visit of NAAC team. She also reiterated the university’s strong commitment to securing an improved NAAC accreditation.
The accreditation process involves three major stages–Institutional Information for Quality Assessment (IIQA), Self-Study Report (SSR) and the scheduling of the peer team visit. According to the university, its IIQA was submitted on May 17, 2024, with clarifications sought on June 10,2024. The submission was subsequently approved on July 5, 2024. The second step, the official said, was the Self-Study Report (SSR). “We submitted the SSR on September 16, 2024 and the clarifications were sought on January 1, 2025. SSR was approved on February 15, 2025.”
“NAAC took nearly three and a half months to process the SSR from submission to approval i.e. from September 16, 2024 to January 1, 2025,” a KU official, privy to the developments, said. Following SSR approval, NAAC instructed higher education institutions to propose three potential date ranges for the peer team visit, with a 15-day gap between each. “We proposed March 15, 2025 as the first date, first week of April as the second date and second week of May as the third date for the NAAC visit,” the official said. He said that the NAAC through one of its communications has stated that it intends to wrap up the accreditation process of HEIs by May 15.
Pertinently, a NAAC statement issued on February 15 clearly indicated that its KU visit was delayed due to fine tuning of the preparation of framework and MBGL.
In a statement dated February 15, NAAC confirmed that delays in certain assessments, including KU’s, were due to finalizing the MBGL framework. “As per the Dr. Radhakrishnan Committee recommendations, NAAC proposes to launch Basic (Binary) Accreditation in April–May 2025, followed by MBGL,” the statement read.
Special committees were working on finalizing the framework and methodology. The process of accreditation is pending for some more Higher Education Institutes (HEIs) that have submitted their applications as per the existing Revised Accreditation Framework (RAF). The Executive Committee of NAAC has decided to adopt the following decisions for these institutions.” The statement had stated that they allow the HEIs in Cycle two and above under RAF to retain the validity of their present grade until the Basic accreditation and MBGL are launched. “They may then choose either of the two (Basic or MBGL) based on their preparedness. The fees paid will be adjusted as per the policy, based on the current stage of the assessment process. HEIs in Cycle 1 under RAF are given the option to opt for Basic accreditation. The fees paid will be adjusted as per the policy, based on the current stage of the assessment process,” the statement had read, adding, “If any of the HEIs in the above categories of (1) and (2) still wish to proceed with assessment as per the existing RAF, the peer team assessment will be carried out through an Online mode for colleges and Hybrid mode (with online and physical) in case of universities. Detailed process and SoPs for Online and Hybrid visits will be shared shortly with the HEIs.”
