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The newly adopted performance-based evaluation and funding model is one of the recent quality initiatives taken by the University Grants Commission in India, which aims to improve quality in management and administration of federally funded universities in India. The article critically analyses the 2020 released ranking based on this model and raises some critical observations about the methodology and results of the ranking, discussing the key features of the ranking framework. The findings suggest that universities ranked higher in the National Institutional Ranking Framework and National Assessment and Accreditation Council ratings have performed not at par with their ranks in this target-based methodology. Only one university of 40 could find a place in the 'outstanding' category and one university was categorised as 'poor'. The article goes on to discuss the current state and future directions of central universities in India aspiring to join the 'world-class' league. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Historically low average pass rate has been a perennial challenge for the universities and provincialised colleges in the North-Eastern states of India (Assam, Meghalaya, Mizoram, Nagaland, Tripura, Manipur and Arunachal Pradesh). Pass rate refers to the proportion of students promoted from one semester to the next and also the proportion of students who pass the final examination to be a graduate. The paper attempts to trace the key parameters for quality improvement for higher education in the region and subsequently augment the pass rate. An inductive content analysis was conducted based on focus group interviews at various levels at Assam University, Silchar and its affiliated provincialised colleges. The four broad categories thus identified (academic, administrative, socio-economic and placement issues) were subjected to Pareto 80-20 principle to identify the issues that are to be given priority for evolving the system. The study would help the administrators to measure the quality of higher education system in a hostile environment characterised by adverse topography, political disturbances, skewed distribution of income, widespread poverty and lack of literacy. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]