Group I
Journals found qualified through UGC CARE’s own protocols. These were assessed by the UGC Cell against the analysis criteria then in force, and made up the bulk of the reference list — 1,456 titles in the widely circulated snapshot.
UGC CARE Approved Journal • Low Cost Publication
UGC CARE Approved Journal List: 2023, 2024, 2025 & the 2026 Position
The complete Group I and Group II structure, the 1,456 Group I subject counts, the earlier Groups A–D, the cloned-journal alerts, what changed when UGC discontinued the listing in October 2024 — and the eight checks plus the low cost publication charges that matter now.
1,456Group I titles
5Subject groups
Oct 2024List discontinued
₹971 INRIndian author APC
Key takeaways
- The UGC-CARE list existed from 2019 until UGC discontinued it after its 584th meeting in October 2024; Group I and Group II labels are history, not a current status.
- No new UGC journal numbers have been issued since the numbered list closed; a journal founded later, like JMVRA (June 2023), cannot have one.
- JMVRA is aligned with UGC’s Suggested Parameters for Choosing Peer-Reviewed Journals; it has no UGC journal number because the numbered lists ended before it was founded.
- Replace the list search with eight checks: ISSN, publisher, editors, peer review, ethics, DOIs, indexing at the source, and the complete fee.
Read this before anything else on the page
UGC discontinued the UGC CARE journal listing framework in October 2024. Following its 584th meeting, UGC announced the discontinuation and moved toward suggestive parameters for selecting peer-reviewed journals. There is no live UGC CARE approved journal list to search for 2025 or 2026.
Everything below about Group I, Group II, Groups A–D, the 1,456 Group I titles and the portal login procedure is preserved because it is still the most-searched description of how the system worked, and because a great deal of advice still circulating assumes it is current. Read it as history. It is labelled as such throughout.
What has not changed is what the framework was trying to enforce: real peer review, verifiable editors, published ethics, honest indexing claims, a permanent record and an honest fee. All of that is checkable without any list, and the eight checks further down are how.
Looking for a peer-reviewed, open-access journal with transparent charges and CrossRef DOI? Read the current call for papers, then submit — nothing is payable until your paper is accepted.
₹971 INR Indian authors · $41 USD international · payable after acceptance2021 → 2026
The UGC CARE List, Year by Year
Which year you are searching for changes the honest answer.
- 2021List era, Group I & Group II
The two-group structure this article originally described was in force, replacing the earlier Groups A, B, C and D. Authors searched the CARE portal by title or ISSN.
- 2023The widely circulated snapshot
The Group I subject counts reproduced below — 1,456 journals across five subjects — date from this period. They are the figures most “UGC CARE list 2023” pages are still quoting.
- 2024Listing discontinued in October
Following its 584th meeting, UGC announced discontinuation of the UGC CARE journal listing and moved toward suggestive parameters for selecting peer-reviewed journals.
- 2025No live list to search
With no list to check, universities, research cells and funders applied their own written criteria. “UGC CARE approved journal list 2025” results are almost entirely archived copies of older data.
- 2026Evidence-based selection
Verify the journal yourself — ISSN, editorial board, peer review, ethics, CrossRef DOI, indexing and the complete fee — then confirm the current written rule of whoever assesses your work.
Historical reference
What Was UGC CARE?
The original article’s description, preserved — with the parts that are no longer true marked as such.
UGC set up a Consortium for Academic and Research Ethics (CARE) to match global standards of high-quality research across all academic disciplines under its purview, and to help prevent academic misconduct — including plagiarism in academic writing among students, faculty, researchers and staff.
CARE was established to identify, continuously monitor, report and maintain the “UGC CARE Reference List of Quality Journals”. During the list era this was presented as a standard every journal was expected to meet, and UGC approved journals were described as the medium through which an article could be published and counted.
What has changed: the original article stated that a journal not on the reference list was “considered invalid”, and that private journals outside the list would not be counted. With the listing discontinued in October 2024, that framing no longer holds. Validity is now decided by the institution assessing your work, against its own current criteria — which is why the last of the eight checks below is to ask them in writing.
How UGC CARE worked
UGC strongly emphasised promoting high-quality research and knowledge content by faculty members, researchers and students. To meet those goals and to ensure prevention of academic misconduct, it set up the Consortium for Academic and Research Ethics. Journals submitted by Council Members and by Universities were analysed by the UGC Cell before being added to the reference list.
Historical reference
UGC CARE List: Group I and Group II
The two-group structure that replaced the earlier four groups.
Group II
Journals indexed in globally recognised databases under the framework then in use. Inclusion here rested on coverage in an external, curated database rather than on CARE’s own assessment.
Group I and Group II describe the list era. They are not a current classification, and no journal can be placed in either group today.
Historical snapshot
Group I Journals by Subject
The five subject categories and their reported totals — the figures most “UGC CARE list” pages are still quoting.
| Subject | Reported Group I total |
|---|---|
| Sciences | 422 |
| Arts & Humanities | 383 |
| Social Sciences | 347 |
| Indian Languages | 248 |
| Multidisciplinary | 56 |
| Total | 1,456 |
Those counts are history. A journal you can verify today is not — check our editorial board, peer-review policy and charges, then submit.
₹971 INR Indian authors · $41 USD international · payable after acceptanceHistorical reference
Why the UGC CARE List Was Set Up
Four stated aims — every one of which still describes what a good journal should be doing.
Promote quality research
To promote quality research, academic integrity and publication ethics across all Indian universities.
Raise global standing
To encourage high-quality publication in reputed journals and help Indian institutions achieve higher global ranks.
Prevent predatory publishing
To prevent publication in dubious, predatory or sub-standard journals, which reflects adversely on and tarnishes the image of Indian academia.
Maintain the reference list
To maintain the UGC CARE List of Quality Journals for all academic purposes, and to develop a methodology for identifying good-quality journals.
Historical reference
The Earlier Groups A, B, C and D
The four-group arrangement that preceded Group I and Group II.
Group A
Research journals from all disciplines indexed in Scopus (Source List) or Web of Science — the Arts & Humanities Citation Index, Science Citation Index Expanded and Social Science Citation Index source publications.
Group B
UGC CARE list journals carried over from the previous list, qualified under the analysis protocols then in force.
Group C
Journals recommended by UGC CARE Council members from all disciplines, qualified under those analysis protocols.
Group D
Journals submitted by UGC CARE Universities across all disciplines and languages, qualified under those analysis protocols.
What replaces the portal search
How to Check a Journal Now — Eight Steps
Every one of these can be completed in an afternoon, using sources that belong to nobody in the transaction.
1
Verify the ISSN
Search the ISSN Portal and confirm the registered title, publisher and country match the journal exactly.
2
Check the editorial board
Named editors, current affiliations and subject expertise you can confirm on an independent institutional page.
3
Read the peer-review policy
Which review model, how reviewers are chosen, how conflicts are handled, how revisions work and who decides.
4
Read the ethics policy
Plagiarism, authorship, competing interests, AI use, complaints, corrections and retractions.
5
Open several CrossRef DOIs
Do they resolve? Does the deposited metadata match the article you are looking at?
6
Verify indexing at its source
Search Scopus Sources and the Clarivate Master Journal List by title and ISSN — never trust a logo.
7
Read the complete fee
Base charge, per-author charges, DOI, certificates, hard copies, taxes, payment timing and refund terms.
8
Ask your institution
Get the current written requirement from the authority that will assess your publication, before you pay.
The old portal procedure — archived
Preserved because most circulating advice still describes exactly this. It no longer works: there is no live list behind it.
- Visit the CARE portal. The official UGC CARE site operated through the UGC Cell at SPPU, Pune.
- Register an account. Submit the required details and set a password.
- Sign in. Log in with the registered email address and password.
- Search Group I or Group II. Look up the journal by title or ISSN within the groups then available.
Run those eight checks on us as well. If we hold up and your paper fits our scope, the call for papers and the submission page are one click away.
₹971 INR Indian authors · $41 USD international · payable after acceptanceAuthor procedure
How to Publish a Paper in a Peer-Reviewed Journal
The original four-step procedure, with the detail each step actually needs.
1
Prepare and submit
Submit the manuscript in .DOC or .DOCX through the online submission page, or by email with the subject line “Submission of Manuscript / Research Paper: [paper title]”, giving the paper category, author name, designation and contact number in the message body.
2
Format and track
Prepare the paper in the journal’s template, in English. Once submitted you can track its status online by signing in to the author account with your paper registration ID.
3
Respond to review
You will receive an acceptance or rejection notice. Where revisions are requested, address the review committee’s comments point by point and resubmit.
4
Register and complete the file
After acceptance, pay the publication charge and send the requested documents — including the signed author undertaking form — to the editor in a single email.
Note the order: review first, payment after. A journal asking for money before it has assessed your manuscript has inverted the process, and that inversion is one of the clearest predatory signals there is.
The question the list never answered
Low Cost Publication, Without the Guesswork
Affordability is a legitimate requirement. It is not a warning sign — and a large fee is not a guarantee.
Most Indian authors are not funded. A research scholar paying from a stipend, an assistant professor meeting a promotion requirement, a postgraduate publishing from a dissertation — for all of them low cost publication decides whether the paper gets published at all. The old list said nothing about price, which is precisely why so many authors ended up choosing on price alone, from whoever advertised a number.
Treat cost as a first-class criterion alongside peer review and ethics, and judge it the same way: by what you get, in writing, before you pay.
| Item | Indian authors | International authors |
|---|---|---|
| Publication charge — full paper online, up to 5 authors | ₹971 INR | $41 USD |
| CrossRef DOI registration (optional) | ₹300 | $20 |
| Hard copy of certificate (optional) | ₹500 | $100 |
| Bundle: printed journal + certificates + DOI (optional) | ₹1100 | $170 |
| Each additional author beyond five | ₹500 | ₹500 |
What the base charge includes
- Online publication of the complete paper, for up to five authors
- An individual softcopy Certificate of Publication for every author
- A softcopy confirmation letter of publication
- Author and paper details handling
- Basic formatting for publication
- A unique paper identification number and typesetting
- Listing in the JMVRA digital library and major indexing databases
- An automated citation generator for your published paper
- Lifetime availability in our digital repository and website
Charges become due after acceptance, never at submission, and payments are non-refundable once an article has been accepted. Read the live Publication Charges and Payment Terms rather than relying on a copied figure, and pay only through the accounts listed there.
Transparent charges, peer review before payment, CrossRef DOI available. Check the open calls and submit when you are ready.
₹971 INR Indian authors · $41 USD international · payable after acceptancePreserved from the original article
Cloned Journal Alert
The clone problem outlived the list. So does the habit of checking.
UGC CARE received complaints about several journals that were not following standard publishing practices. After scrutinising them against CARE protocols, UGC removed those journals from the group, and stated that publication in them would not be considered for any academic purpose.
The UGC Cell for Journal Analysis at the Centre for Publication Ethics (CPE), SPPU Pune, was notified of cloned journals and of online versions of print-only journals in which the ISSN, title, logo and branding had all been copied. Journals found to be involved in unethical practices were removed immediately.
- Cloned list, Group I: ugccare.unipune.ac.in/Apps1/User/Web/CloneJournals
- Cloned list, Group II: ugccare.unipune.ac.in/Apps1/User/Web/CloneJournalsGroupII
Title copied almost exactlyISSN does not match the registered titleUnrelated or newly registered domainFree-email contact onlyEditors who cannot be verifiedGuaranteed acceptanceFees that appear after acceptanceDatabase logos with no source recordBroken or thin archiveDOIs resolving somewhere elsePayment requested to a personal accountPressure to pay before review
How to check for a clone yourself
- Search the exact ISSN on the ISSN Portal and note the registered title and publisher.
- Compare publisher identity and official domain across reliable records.
- Check whether the domain, email addresses and contact details are consistent with each other.
- Open CrossRef DOI links from several different issues and inspect where each one lands.
- If doubt remains, contact an editor through an independently verified institutional page — never through a contact form on the suspect site.
If you have already submitted or paid
Stop any further payment. Write to the journal withdrawing the manuscript and keep the correspondence — do not leave the same paper under review in two places. Report the site to your institution’s research cell so colleagues are warned, and if money moved by card or bank transfer, raise it with your bank promptly: the window for a dispute is short.
Check the originals
Sources, Credits & Disclaimer
- UGC public notice concerning discontinuation of the UGC CARE listing
- UGC CARE portal, UGC Cell at SPPU Pune
- University Grants Commission official website
- ISSN Portal
- Crossref Metadata Search
- Scopus Sources
- Clarivate Master Journal List
Credits: content and figures in the historical sections are drawn from UGC’s own published material at ugccare.unipune.ac.in and ugc.gov.in.
Disclaimer: our journal operates a rigorous peer-review process and is a refereed journal. For indexing status and inclusion in databases such as UGC CARE, Scopus or Web of Science, refer to the latest lists on those databases’ own websites. Journal status, coverage, fees and institutional rules change; the information here may become outdated and should be independently verified before you submit or pay. This page is not UGC certification and does not guarantee acceptance by any authority.
Keep reading
Related Guides
The UGC CARE list, year by year
Six dates explain every phrase an author still meets in older advice — and why none of them is a current approval.
What to use instead of a list
A list told you where a journal stood on one day. These six records tell you where it stands now.
| What you need | Where to check it | What it proves |
|---|---|---|
| ISSN | ISSN Portal, by number | The title and publisher are registered as shown |
| Peer review | The journal’s own policy page | A documented process with named outcomes |
| Indexing | The database’s own source list | Current coverage, by ISSN — never a logo |
| DOI | Resolve it at doi.org | The identifier and its metadata point to the paper |
| Fee | The journal’s charges page | The complete cost and when it is due |
| Acceptance | Your research cell, in writing | The rule that will actually judge your paper |
Related articles and guides
Submit Your Paper to JMVRA
Peer-reviewed, open access, ISSN 2984-8911, Impact Factor 11.25. Transparent low cost publication charges, CrossRef DOI available, and review before payment. Read the call for papers to confirm scope and deadlines, then submit online.
Questions? [email protected]
What authors search for
Popular Search Terms
Grouped by intent, so you can see which section above answers each one.
UGC CARE list by year
Low cost publication
Quality signals
Author intent
Almost every phrase above is really asking one of two questions: “is this journal genuine?” or “what will it actually cost me?” The eight checks and the charges table on this page answer both — no list required.
Popular questions and answers
UGC CARE Approved Journal List FAQs
These visible answers also power the FAQ structured data on this page.
Is there a UGC CARE approved journal list for 2025 or 2026?
No. UGC discontinued the UGC CARE journal listing framework in October 2024, after its 584th meeting, and moved toward suggestive parameters for selecting peer-reviewed journals. Pages advertising a “UGC CARE list 2025” or “2026” are almost always republishing archived list-era data.
Was there a UGC CARE approved journal list for 2023 and 2024?
Yes, for part of that period. The list operated through 2023 and into 2024, organised into Group I and Group II. The subject counts reproduced on this page — 1,456 Group I journals across five subjects — come from that era and are preserved here as a historical snapshot, not as a current list.
What was UGC CARE set up to do?
UGC established the Consortium for Academic and Research Ethics to match global standards of research quality across disciplines and to help prevent academic misconduct, including plagiarism, among students, faculty, researchers and staff. It identified, monitored and maintained a reference list of quality journals.
What was the difference between Group I and Group II?
Group I contained journals found qualified through UGC CARE’s own protocols. Group II contained journals indexed in globally recognised databases under the framework then in use. Both labels describe the list era and are not a current classification.
What were Groups A, B, C and D?
An earlier arrangement that preceded Group I and Group II. Group A was journals indexed in Scopus or Web of Science; Group B carried journals from the previous UGC list; Group C held journals recommended by CARE Council members; Group D held journals submitted by CARE Universities. All four were qualified under the analysis protocols then in force.
How many journals were in UGC CARE Group I?
The widely circulated snapshot reported 1,456 Group I journals: 422 in Sciences, 383 in Arts & Humanities, 347 in Social Sciences, 248 in Indian Languages and 56 Multidisciplinary. Those are period figures, not a live count.
Does “not on the list” still mean a journal is invalid?
No — and that framing was always too strong. With no list in force, validity is decided by the institution assessing your work, against its own current criteria. Ask your university, department, research cell, employer or funder for that rule in writing.
How do I check a UGC approved journal now that the portal search is gone?
Verify the journal directly: ISSN on the ISSN Portal, named editors with checkable affiliations, a documented peer-review policy, published ethics, working CrossRef DOIs, indexing confirmed in each database’s own source list, and the complete fee. Then confirm your institution’s current written requirement.
What does “UGC CARE Approved Journal” mean in 2026?
Read it as shorthand for the quality practices the CARE framework tried to enforce — genuine peer review, verifiable editors, published ethics, honest indexing claims and a permanent record — rather than as a certificate any journal can produce today.
Is JMVRA a UGC CARE Approved Journal?
No journal can show a current CARE certificate, because the listing was discontinued in October 2024. JMVRA is a peer-reviewed, open-access journal with ISSN 2984-8911, CrossRef DOI registration, published peer-review and ethics policies and fully disclosed charges. Check those against the eight verification steps on this page, and confirm acceptance with your own institution.
What is a cloned journal, and how do I spot one?
A cloned journal copies a genuine journal’s title, ISSN, logo and branding onto a different domain in order to collect submissions and fees. UGC’s clone alerts covered exactly this. Compare the exact title, ISSN, publisher, domain, contacts and DOI destinations against authoritative records — a copied identity on an unrelated domain is a serious warning sign.
Where were the UGC CARE cloned journal lists published?
The UGC Cell for Journal Analysis at the Centre for Publication Ethics, SPPU Pune, published separate clone alerts for Group I and Group II on the CARE portal. Both links are reproduced in the cloned-journal section of this page. The framework has changed, but the habit of checking has not.
Is a low publication fee a sign of a predatory journal?
Not by itself. Cost reflects a publisher’s operating model far more than its review rigour. A lean open-access journal can fund genuine peer review, CrossRef DOI registration and long-term hosting at a low fee, and some of the most aggressive predatory operations charge premium prices precisely because a high number reads as prestige.
What is the low cost publication charge at JMVRA?
JMVRA publishes its charges in full: ₹971 INR for Indian authors and $41 USD for international authors. That covers online publication of the complete paper for up to five authors, individual softcopy certificates, a confirmation letter, formatting, a unique paper ID, digital library listing, a citation generator and lifetime availability.
Are there hidden charges?
There should not be, at any journal. Ask specifically about additional authors, extra pages, CrossRef DOI registration, printed certificates, hard copies and courier, similarity reports and any fast-track option. At JMVRA the base charge covers up to five authors; each additional author beyond five is ₹500, and DOI, printed certificates and hard copies are listed separately with their own prices.
When is the publication fee due?
After your paper is accepted — not at submission. Registration for publication begins once the paper is accepted, and under the published refund policy payments are non-refundable after that point. Read the Payment Terms page in full before paying.
How do I publish a paper in a UGC approved journal?
Submit the manuscript in .DOC or .DOCX through the online submission page or by email with the required subject line and author details; prepare it in the journal’s template in English; track its status with your paper registration ID; respond to the review committee’s comments; then, after acceptance, pay the charge and send the signed author undertaking form and remaining documents to the editor in one email.
Does a CrossRef DOI prove a journal was UGC CARE approved?
No. A DOI is a persistent identifier and a metadata deposit. It makes an article permanently citable and linkable; it certifies nothing about peer-review quality, list status or inclusion in Scopus or Web of Science.
Does Google Scholar indexing count as Scopus indexing?
No. Google Scholar is a broad discovery crawler. Scopus and Web of Science run separate, curated source-selection processes. Verify coverage in each database’s own source list.
Can JMVRA guarantee my university will accept the publication?
No journal can decide that for an independent institution. Take the journal’s evidence — ISSN, editorial board, peer-review policy, ethics, DOI, archive and fee — to your university, department, research cell, employer or funder and get their answer in writing before you submit or pay.
How long does review and publication take?
It depends on reviewer availability and the revisions your manuscript needs. Treat any journal promising guaranteed acceptance, or a turnaround too short to allow real assessment, as a warning sign rather than a feature.
Where do I submit my paper?
Read the current call for papers to confirm scope, article types and deadlines, then submit through the official online submission page. Charges are payable only after acceptance.
Question not answered here? Email [email protected] before you submit — or go straight to the current call for papers.
₹971 INR Indian authors · $41 USD international · payable after acceptance
