IIT-Madras and IISc retain top NIRF slots; Hindu springs surprise – Times of India

NEW DELHI: Indian Institute of Technology-Madras continues to shine in the National Institute Ranking Framework (NIRF), securing the top spot in both the overall and engineering categories for the sixth and ninth consecutive years, respectively. Similarly, Indian Institute of Science Bangalore retains its position as the best university for the ninth year in a row.
However, in a surprising turn, Hindu College has unseated Miranda House, ending its seven-year streak as the top college in the country.St Stephen’s College, after a two-year absence from the top 10, has made a comeback, sharing the third position with Ramakrishna Mission Vivekananda Centenary College, West Bengal.
In NIRF 2024, IITs and IISc continue to dominate across various categories, much like they do in global rankings. IIT-Bombay has been ranked as the top institute for innovation, while IISc Bangalore leads in research.
The overall category, a core component of the India rankings, is overwhelmingly dominated by IITs. Eight of the top 10 institutions are IITs, with the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) Delhi at seventh place and Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) at tenth. Notably, there has been minimal change in the top 10 over the past five years, except for AIIMS entering and Banaras Hindu University (BHU) dropping out in 2022.

While IIT-Madras, IISc, and IIT-Bombay claim the top three spots in the overall category, Manipal Academy of Higher Education, ranked 11th, is the highest-ranked private university. Seven private universities feature in the top 25 of this category.

The ninth edition of NIRF was released on Monday. The number of higher education institutions participating rose from 3,565 in 2016 to 10,845 in 2024.
The rankings now encompass sixteen categories and subject domains, up from four in 2016. NIRF assesses institutions based on five broad parameters: teaching, learning and resources; research and professional practice; graduation outcomes; outreach and inclusivity; and perception.
In the university category, Delhi University (DU) made significant progress, jumping from 11th to 6th place. DU also has six colleges in the top 10 and 26 in the top 100. IISc, JNU, and Jamia Millia Islamia are the top three universities. Three private institutions-Manipal Academy of Higher Education, Amrita Vishwa Vidyapeetham, and Vellore Institute of Technology-are among the top 10, with nine private universities in the top 20 overall.
Siksha ‘O’ Anusandhan, Bhubaneswar, improved its ranking to 14th in the university category and made it into the top 25 overall, emerging as the top ranked HEI in Odisha.
It also retained its position in the top 10 dental sciences institutions in the country, ranked 9th nationally.
Union education minister Dharmendra Pradhan, while releasing the rankings, said that knowing the quality, performance and strengths of an academic institution “is a right of students and parents. Therefore, all the 58,000 HEIs in the country must come under the ranking and rating framework,” and stressed the need to prioritise employability and skills, suggesting that the ranking system should also assess skilling as a key parameter.
The ranking report noted that most research activity is concentrated within the top 100 institutions across various categories, though it also pointed out that many general degree colleges are increasingly active in research and publications. However, it highlighted a significant challenge: the majority of faculty with doctoral qualifications are concentrated in these top institutions, leaving others at a disadvantage. The report underscored the critical role that mentorship during doctoral training plays in preparing faculty for teaching careers in higher education.
In the college category, 63 of the top 100 institutions are from Tamil Nadu (37) and Delhi (26).
Nine IITs are in the top ten list for engineering colleges with IIT-Madras being at the top for the ninth consecutive year in the category. IIT-Delhi and IIT-Bombay also retained their second and third spot respectively in the category. National Institute of Technology (NIT), Tiruchirapalli is the only non-IIT in the top ten list.
In pharmacy, Jamia Hamdard rose to the top spot from its second position last year while the National Institute of Pharmaceutical Education and Research, Hyderabad slipped to the second rank. BITS Pilani retained its third position in the category.