Srinagar, Apr 10: The University of Kashmir, the Valley’s premier institution of higher learning, is making final preparations for the anticipated visit of the National Assessment and Accreditation Council (NAAC) peer team, expected to take place anytime before May 15 this year.
Currently holding an A+ grade, Kashmir University was last accredited by NAAC in May 2019, with the five-year validity upto May 2024. While the re-accreditation process was initially scheduled to begin immediately after expiry, it was delayed due to the NAAC’s ongoing 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. An official at the university told Rising Kashmir that the university had fulfilled all requirements well within time. “We were ready from day one. There has been no delay on our part,” he said. “Every university prepares for re-accreditation much in advance. We followed that protocol strictly.”
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.,” the official 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.
Official sources said that since March 15 and first week of April are over, there is every likelihood that NAAC team may visit KU in the second week of May 2025.
Pertinently, a NAAC statement issued on February 15 clearly indicates 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 are currently 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 said that that 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 said. “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.”
Speaking exclusively to Rising Kashmir, Vice-Chancellor Kashmir University, Prof. Nilofer Khan, reaffirmed the university’s strong commitment to securing an improved NAAC accreditation, urging all stakeholders to work collectively with the aim of advancing from its present ranking. “The university has already addressed key areas of improvement and strengthened quality initiatives, quality assurance and overall academic and institutional excellence,” she said.
She clarified that the university is fully prepared for the upcoming NAAC assessment. “The schedule and timing of the NAAC peer team’s visit are solely determined by NAAC itself. The University of Kashmir remains ready and committed to presenting its progress and vision whenever the visit is scheduled,” the VC KU said.
