The recent show-cause notice issued to a senior professor of Andhra University over the allegations of plagiarism has raised several questions on the preparedness of the institution to prevent such malpractice.
After receiving complaints over plagiarisation of a research paper, Vice-Chancellor G. Nageswara Rao asked the senior professor to submit a detailed explanation. In the last two years, this is the second such case and a few senior professors say that it is just a ‘tip of the iceberg’.
As per the University Grants Commission (UGC) norms, all universities should install anti-plagiarism software. But, the fact remains that the nine-decade-old university is yet to have an anti-plagiarism software, even as some private universities in the State have ensured the measures to check the malpractice.
‘Rank matters’
Some senior professors say that plagiarism is no stranger to the campus. “The university has been postponing the installation of anti-plagiarism software to avoid detection of such malpractice so that it does not make a dent on its ranking. It is indirectly benefiting some teachers, guides and research scholars too,” a senior professor said on the condition of anonymity.
Joining the chorus, some faculty members opine that the ranking of the university and promotion of faculty members depend on the number of PhDs awarded and research papers submitted by teachers to various journals. “If the anti-plagiarism software is installed, it will bring down the numbers drastically for sure, affecting the rank and reputation of the university,” another senior professor says.
‘Cut & paste is the norm’
Further, the hush-hush talks on the campus suggest that research papers are being plagiarised and submitted to some online journals that are run by several professors of the university. And it means minimal checks or even turning of a blind eye by the in-house committee.
In case of PhDs, ‘cut and paste’ has become the order of the day. Every thesis is evaluated by a three-member adjudicator body comprising two Indians and one foreigner. The evaluation is delayed by a year as it attracts the clause that after one year, the third evaluator can be an Indian. Given the situation, no foreign evaluator is showing interest in evaluating the thesis works. All these issues have been pointed out by a three-member committee instituted by the university to probe the issue.
“As per the UGC norms, about 30% is all that a research scholar can take from other sources in the form of quotes including self written papers and books. Given ranks and promotions have become sacrosanct, the focus is now on quantity and not quality and this is why, plagiarism is being encouraged indirectly,” a professor observed.
Software for PhD thesis
However, the AU authorities say that the anti-plagiarism software will be procured shortly. “Issues related to plagiarism have come to the notice of the administration. We are in the process of procuring a software. Moreover, the software will be used for PhD thesis check only. As far as research papers are concerned, it is the responsibility of the journals to check the content,” Vice-Chancellor Nageswara Rao says. AU is focusing on the quality of research works, not quantity and it does not matter if the numbers come down, he adds.
