From journal validation to quality governance: a policy analysis of India's transition from UGC-CARE to quality-oriented research assessment and its implications for medical and dental education

Abstract

The University Grants Commission (UGC) announced the discontinuation of the UGC-CARE Reference List through a Public Notice dated 11 February 2025, following the Commission's decision taken at its 584th meeting on 3 October 2024, marking a major shift in India's approach to research quality governance. Introduced in 2019 to address predatory publishing, the UGC-CARE framework provided a centralized mechanism for identifying credible publication venues. The transition to quality-oriented research assessment emphasizing publication ethics, peer review integrity, editorial transparency, and institutional accountability has generated considerable debate, yet its implications for research integrity and health professions education remain insufficiently explored. A narrative policy analysis was conducted using publicly available UGC policy documents, regulatory reports, international responsible research assessment frameworks, and peer reviewed literature. Guided by Walt and Gilson's Policy Analysis Triangle, the analysis examined the policy context, content, process, and key actors associated with India's transition from the UGC-CARE framework to quality-oriented research assessment. Evidence was synthesized into four thematic domains: journal quality governance, research integrity, stakeholder implications, and educational implications. The findings were organized into four thematic domains. First, the post-CARE framework reflects a transition from centralized journal vetting to decentralized quality governance. Second, greater emphasis is placed on researcher responsibility, institutional accountability, and publication literacy. Third, the reform has important implications for researchers, institutions, and research assessment practices. Fourth, it creates opportunities to strengthen publication ethics, journal evaluation, and responsible scholarly communication within medical and dental education. Based on these findings, publication literacy is proposed as a competency supporting competency-based medical education (CBME). India's post-CARE reforms represent an evolution toward responsible research assessment and institutional accountability rather than a return to the pre-CARE era. Strengthening publication literacy, research integrity culture, and faculty development may support successful implementation of the emerging quality-oriented research assessment framework.