NIRF 2026 Rankings Soon: IIT Madras, Hindu College among last year’s category toppers

The National Institutional Ranking Framework (NIRF) 2026 rankings are expected to be announced soon by the Ministry of Education (MoE). However, the ministry has not yet announced an official date for releasing the India Rankings 2026.

The NIRF 2026 ranking process is already underway. According to the official NIRF portal, the Data Capturing System (DCS) submission for India Rankings 2026 opened on January 6 and closed on March 16, 2026. The portal has also made publication and patent data available for the 2026 cycle.

Post completion of the evaluation process, the rankings will be published on the official NIRF website at nirfindia.org. Students, parents, and institutions will be able to check the category-wise NIRF 2026 rankings and scores online.

Also read IIM Amritsar wants to build ‘distinct identity’ in MBA education, NIRF doesn’t capture full picture: Director

The NIRF rankings will cover categories such as overall, university, college, engineering, management, medical, law, pharmacy, architecture and planning, dental, agriculture and allied sectors, research institutions, innovation, open university, skill university and state public university. Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) category was also included last year.

NIRF Ranking: Previous year’s top institutes

IIT Madras retained the top position in the NIRF ranking overall category with a score of 87.31 and also secured the top position in the engineering category in the 2025 rankings. Hindu College, Delhi, was ranked number one in the college category. IISc Bengaluru topped the university category. IIM Ahmedabad was ranked first among management institutions, while AIIMS New Delhi retained the top position in the medical category.

NIRF 2025 category toppers

NIRF Ranking: Changes introduced in 2025

The NIRF 2025 rankings introduced a new set of parameters and methodology for assessing institutions on their performance towards the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). The Ministry of Education developed the framework under NIRF, with the detailed parameters and methodology made available on the official NIRF website. IIT Madras topped the inaugural SDG category in the 2025 rankings.

Also read Top 20 medical colleges in India as per NIRF Rankings

Another key change in NIRF 2025 was the introduction of a negative marking system based on the number of retracted publications. The system was applied to the Overall, Engineering, Universities and Research Institutions categories. NIRF also continued the elimination of institutional-level self-citations, a measure introduced in 2024 across all categories and subject domains, in the 2025 rankings.