The number of Indian institutions in the QS World University Rankings has grown from 11 in 2015 to 52 in the 2027 edition. This improvement is linked to the government’s National Institutional Ranking Framework (NIRF) and supportive policies. While participation in national rankings has doubled, experts highlight that long-term success depends on addressing funding disparities and enhancing research output in state-run universities.
Indian higher education has seen a significant shift in global visibility over the last decade, with 52 institutions now featured in the QS World University Rankings, compared to just 11 in 2015. Minister of State for Education, Sukanta Majumdar, shared these figures in a written reply to the Lok Sabha on August 10, 2026, crediting the progress to targeted policy reforms.
The primary driver behind this shift is the National Institutional Ranking Framework (NIRF), introduced by the government in 2015. NIRF was designed to encourage competition among domestic universities by ranking them based on teaching, research quality, resource inclusivity, and peer perception. This framework has successfully increased engagement across the education sector, with unique institution participation rising from 4,030 in 2021 to 7,692 in 2025. Applications for the ranking process have also seen a sharp increase, climbing from 6,272 to 14,163 over the same four-year period.
Strategic Policies and Government Support
Beyond NIRF, the government has implemented several structural changes to elevate academic standards. The National Education Policy (NEP) 2020 has been a major influence, promoting multidisciplinary learning and critical thinking. On the funding front, schemes like the Rashtriya Uchchatar Shiksha Abhiyan (RUSA) and the Pradhan Mantri Uchchatar Shiksha Abhiyan (PM-USHA) are channeling capital toward infrastructure upgrades and the creation of research-focused universities. Additionally, the Institutions of Eminence (IoE) scheme provides top-tier academic bodies with more autonomy, allowing them to better align their curricula and research activities with global standards.
Challenges and Future Monitoring
While the increase in global rankings is a positive development for India's human capital and long-term economic competitiveness, educators and policy observers point to persistent hurdles. A significant challenge remains the performance gap between central institutions and state-run universities. Research output, including patent filings and academic publications, is often concentrated in a few central bodies, leaving many state institutions with lower international visibility.
Another area to monitor is the consistency of funding for state-level education schemes. Volatility in capital allocation can hinder long-term infrastructure projects, potentially affecting the quality of education at the grassroots level. Furthermore, critics often note that while ranking methodologies provide a benchmark, they may not always capture the full scope of social impact or equitable access in a diverse system like India’s. Stakeholders will likely track how effectively these government-backed programs can bridge the research gap and ensure that the improvement in global rankings is matched by sustained quality across all levels of the education sector.