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ANRF unveils mandatory retraction disclosure rule
The Anusandhan National Research Foundation (ANRF) announced new rules linking government funding eligibility to disclosures of past retractions and AI-use. The policy tightens plagiarism controls, expands AI-detection measures, and relaxes collaboration and cost-sharing barriers, with an opening window for pre-proposals in mid-2026.
Why It Matters
This marks a formal step toward heightened research integrity in India's grant ecosystem and could influence practices in other funding bodies.
Timeline
10 Events
ANRF's broader role and scope
May 4, 2026
ANRF aims to promote R&D across universities and institutes through 19 grant programmes and to coordinate and scale high-impact, investigator-driven research nationwide.
Quotations and comments on policy
May 4, 2026
Achal Agrawal, founder of IRW, welcomed the rules, saying the retraction disclosures will deter misconduct and that the policy should be emulated by other funding agencies.
Funding cap and duration
May 4, 2026
Successful projects can receive up to ₹5 crore for up to five years, covering equipment, manpower, travel, contingency, and consumables.
Proposal submission window opens; pre-proposals invited
May 4, 2026
Researchers from recognised Indian institutions can submit pre-proposals on the ANRF website from May 15 to June 10, 2026; shortlisted candidates will be invited to submit full proposals.
Cost-sharing removal and co-PI rule changes
May 4, 2026
The mandatory 50% cost-sharing requirement for national laboratories has been removed. Co-PI requirements are relaxed, allowing up to five co-PIs from different institutions.
AI and retractions screening details
May 4, 2026
The guidelines state the PI and Co-PIs may be screened for AI usage and past retractions, with alerts to the technical program committee.
ANRF unveils mandatory retraction disclosure rule
May 4, 2026
ANRF introduces new ARG rules requiring PIs and Co-PIs to sign an undertaking that the proposal is not AI-generated and to declare details and reasons of publication retractions in the past five years. The policy also includes a zero-tolerance stance on plagiarism and requires third-party plagiarism checks.
ANRF sanctioned projects tally as of July 2025
July 2025
As of July 2025, ANRF had sanctioned 930 projects under these grants.
NIRF introduces negative scoring for retractions; India's 2025 metrics
2025
The National Institutional Ranking Framework had already introduced negative scoring for retractions in its 2025 rankings. India published about 5% of the world’s roughly 64 lakh research papers in 2025 and accounted for about 20% of roughly 4,000 global retractions, per IRW's Retraction Watch Database analysis.
ANRF established by Act of Parliament
August 2023
ANRF was established in August 2023 through an Act of Parliament as India's apex body for scientific research.