Crackdown on reviewers: Naac axes a fifth of assessors over irregularities

NAAC has axed a fifth of its assessors in a crackdown on reviewers who did not meet its required quality standards, officials said on Thursday.

The National Assessment and Accreditation Council (NAAC) has also hired more than 1,000 new reviewers based on recommendations of a committee that included vice-chancellors of several universities.

Under fire over alleged irregularities in assessments, NAAC has also halted physical inspection of colleges and moved the process completely online.

NAAC is an autonomous body established by the University Grants Commission in 1994 to systematically assess and accredit the higher educational institutions (HEIs), with the objective of quality assurance and improvement in the quality of education.

According to the officials, NAAC had more than 7,000 assessors who were responsible for evaluating HEIs in the course of grading the institutions.

"Different regions had a different set of assessors, sometimes they had to travel to other parts as well. Reviewing the work and conduct of the assessors has been part of the process for a long time but a lot of irregularities led to strong action this time. We have done away with one-fifth of the strength ... There were many who were there on the list but weren't assessing lately, so they were removed as were," a senior NAAC official said.

"Depending on the review, some have been removed for a period of six months, some for a year and some debarred. We have also parallelly recruited more than 1,000 new reviewers who will now be trained," the official added.

The action came following a Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) probe into the alleged bribery of a NAAC team by the Guntur-based KLEF in exchange for an A++ rating for its university.

The seven peer assessors concerned were debarred by NAAC.

"Evaluations will now be conducted entirely online, eliminating campus visits for colleges. Universities, though, will see a hybrid approach -- most assessments will be remote but select reviewers will still make on-site visits to ensure oversight," the senior official added.