Journal Policies

Policy Overview

These policies govern how IJCRT handles submissions, reviews, publishes and corrects work, and what authors, reviewers and readers may expect of the journal. They apply to every manuscript submitted to the journal, ISSN 2320-2882.

Where a policy on this page and a statement elsewhere on the site appear to conflict, the editorial office should be asked to resolve it, and this page corrected. Policies are reviewed periodically; substantive changes apply to manuscripts submitted after the change, not retrospectively to work already accepted.

• Below 15%Similarity, checked before review
• Double-blindTransparent peer review
• CC BY 4.0Open access; authors keep copyright
• ₹1501 / $59Only after acceptance
• Up to 5Authors covered by one fee
• Never deletedRetracted articles stay, marked

Policy Library

Every rule that affects an author, reviewer or reader is published in full. Each card below links to the complete policy page; the sections further down this page summarise the ones authors ask about most.

See all 36 policies in one place

Peer Review Policy

All research content is peer reviewed. The journal operates double-blind review: author identities are withheld from reviewers and reviewer identities from authors.

The process

1. Editorial screening — scope, completeness, declarations and similarity are checked before review.
2. Reviewer assignment — the manuscript goes to subject experts who have no conflict with the work.
3. Assessment — reviewers evaluate originality, methodology, evidence, clarity, ethical compliance and contribution.
4. Recommendation — accept, minor revision, major revision or reject.
5. Decision — the editor weighs the reports and decides; reviewers advise, the editor decides.
6. Notification — the decision and the reviewer comments are sent to the corresponding author.

Reviewer obligations

• Accept only assignments within your expertise and available time.
• Treat the manuscript as confidential; do not share, cite or use it before publication.
• Declare any conflict of interest and withdraw where one exists.
• Give specific, constructive comments grounded in the manuscript rather than in the author's presumed identity.
• Raise integrity concerns with the handling editor rather than making public allegations.

Transparent Peer Review

IJCRT is a Transparent, Peer-Reviewed, Open Access Journal (Refereed Journal). Review is double-blind, and the review itself is open to the author: the reviewers’ comments and the documented decision are shared with every author as standard practice.

1. ScreeningScope, declarations and a Turnitin / iThenticate check
2. 2–3 reviewersIndependent subject experts, double-blind
3. Reports to authorComments and recommendation shared in full
4. Editor decisionAccept, revise or reject, with reasons
5. TPR reportA Transparent Peer Review report on request

How transparent peer review works at IJCRT · Transparent peer review explained · Peer review process

Publication Ethics

Research reporting must accurately describe the work performed. The journal expects authors to cite sources, acknowledge contributions, disclose conflicts, and obtain any necessary ethical approval and consent.

Author responsibilities

• Submit original work that is not published or under review elsewhere.
• Report data honestly; fabrication, falsification and selective reporting are misconduct.
• Cite prior work accurately, including work that contradicts your findings.
• Obtain ethical approval and informed consent for research involving human participants or animals, and record both in the manuscript.
• Cooperate with any investigation the journal conducts into a concern about published work.

Editorial responsibilities

• Decide on the basis of the work's merits, without regard to the authors' identity, institution, nationality or seniority.
• Keep submissions confidential.
• Avoid handling manuscripts where a conflict exists.
• Act on credible concerns about published work, and correct the record where required.

Misconduct

Where misconduct is alleged, the journal examines the evidence, gives the authors an opportunity to respond, and acts proportionately — which may mean rejection, correction, an expression of concern, retraction, or notification of the authors' institution. Concerns should be reported to editor@ijcrt.org with the article title or identifier and a clear explanation of the evidence.

Plagiarism Policy

Every manuscript is screened for similarity before review. Plagiarism includes copying text, ideas, data, figures or code without attribution; close paraphrasing that keeps another author's structure; and self-plagiarism, where an author reuses their own previously published text without citing it.

• Submissions exceeding the threshold are returned or rejected before review.
• Plagiarism detected during review results in rejection.
• Plagiarism detected after publication results in a correction or retraction, and the authors' institution may be informed.

A similarity score is a starting point for judgement, not a verdict: a high score may be driven by standard methodological phrasing, and a low one does not rule out the copying of ideas. Editorial assessment is applied in both directions.

Artificial Intelligence (AI) Content Policy

Generative AI may assist with writing. It may not be an author, and it may not be used to invent results. IJCRT does not prohibit AI tools; it requires that their use is declared and that a human remains answerable for every sentence, number and citation.

Full AI policy · AI-generated content policy (blog)

Authorship Policy

Authorship is for those who contributed substantially to the conception or design of the work, the acquisition or analysis of the data, or the drafting and critical revision of the manuscript, and who approve the submitted version and accept responsibility for it.

• Everyone meeting these criteria must be listed; no one who does not should be.
• Gift authorship and ghost authorship are both misconduct.
• Other contributors should be recognised in the acknowledgements.
• Changes to the author list after submission require the written agreement of all authors; changes after publication require a formal correction notice.

Conflict of Interest

A conflict of interest exists where a financial or personal relationship could reasonably be thought to influence the work or its assessment — employment, consultancy, funding, patents, shareholdings, or a close professional or personal relationship with those involved.

Authors must declare all such interests at submission, and state explicitly where there are none. Reviewers and editors must decline or withdraw from handling work where a conflict exists. Disclosure is not an accusation; failure to disclose is the problem.

Research Ethics, Data & Preprints

Policies for the research behind a paper, not just the paper itself. Each card summarises the rule; the full policy is one click away.

Corrections and Retractions

Published articles are never silently deleted or edited. The version of record and any notice attached to it remain available, because the integrity of the scholarly record depends on readers being able to see what happened.

Retraction Policy

When a published paper is found to be unreliable, it is retracted, not removed. The PDF stays at its original URL with a watermark, the DOI continues to resolve, and a retraction notice is published and linked to it — so every citation still works and every reader sees why.

Full retraction policy · Correction policy · Crossmark update policy

Copyright and Licence

Authors retain copyright in their work. On acceptance, authors grant the journal the right to publish and distribute the article as part of the journal.

Articles are published under an open licence permitting others to read, download, copy, distribute and build upon the work, provided the authors and the journal are properly credited. Authors may deposit the published version in an institutional repository or share it from a personal page.

Where a manuscript reuses third-party material, obtaining permission from the rights holder is the author's responsibility, and the source must be credited in the caption.

Open Access Policy

All content is open access from the moment of publication. There is no subscription, no paywall, no embargo period and no charge to readers.

Publication is funded by a one-time article processing charge payable after acceptance, set out on the Publication Charges page. Payment plays no part in the editorial decision and nothing is payable before acceptance.

Archiving and Preservation

Published articles are maintained on the journal's website with a permanent article page, and each is registered with a DOI so that citations continue to resolve even if the site is reorganised. Authors are also encouraged to deposit the published version in their institutional repository, which adds an independent preservation copy.

UGC CARE / UGC Approved Alignment

28 met · 2 partly met · 3 not published · 2 not applicable — of UGC’s 35 suggested parameters

UGC CARE / UGC Approved status · All 35 UGC parameters, one by one · UGC public notice (PDF)

Impact Factor & Metrics Policy

IJCRT’s impact factor of 9.17 is calculated from Google Scholar citation data. It is not a Clarivate Journal Impact Factor, and it should be described as Google Scholar-based wherever authors cite it. Every figure the journal publishes links to the service that produced it.

Figures read on 30 Sep 2026; they change as each service updates. Impact factor details · How to state it correctly

Indexing & Discovery

IJCRT lists an index or database only where a record can be opened and checked. Each badge below links to the record itself.

• Google ScholarVerified
• CrossrefVerified
• OpenAlexVerified
• ISSN PortalVerified
• ROADVerified
• ZenodoVerified
• Scholar9Verified
• ORWaveVerified

Every indexing & discovery record, with live counts · Indexing verification

Privacy Policy

Information supplied during submission — names, affiliations, email addresses, telephone numbers and correspondence — is used to operate peer review, to publish accepted work, to issue certificates and receipts, and to maintain the published record.

• Author names, affiliations and article metadata are published with the article and deposited with the DOI registration agency and indexing services. This information is public by design and cannot be withdrawn after publication.
• Contact details supplied for correspondence are not published beyond the corresponding-author details shown on the article itself.
• Reviewer identities are not disclosed to authors.
• Personal data is not sold, and is shared with third parties only where publication or a legal obligation requires it.
• Notifications are sent by email and SMS to the contact details supplied at submission; keep them current.

For questions about the personal data the journal holds about you, write to editor@ijcrt.org.

Refund Policy

IJCRT charges the publication fee only after acceptance. Nothing is payable at submission, during screening or during peer review.

• Charged after acceptance only — the fee (₹1501 for Indian authors, $59 for foreign authors, covering up to 5 authors) is requested only once the paper has been accepted.
• Not refundable after acceptance and payment — once a paper has been accepted and the fee paid, the publication fee is not refundable, because the editorial, review and publication work it pays for has already been carried out.
• Withdrawal after payment — withdrawing an accepted manuscript after payment does not entitle the authors to a refund.
• Published articles — publication cannot be undone in the way a product can be returned; the article is public and indexed.

Duplicate payments, payments made in error, and payments for articles the journal does not ultimately publish should be raised with the editorial office, quoting the paper ID and the payment reference, and will be examined on their facts.

Terms and Conditions

• Use of the website and submission system constitutes acceptance of these policies.
• Authors warrant that their submission is original, that they hold the necessary rights, and that the declarations they make are accurate.
• Authors are responsible for the accuracy of the details they supply, including names, order, affiliations and email addresses, which enter the permanent published record.
• The journal may decline any submission that falls outside its scope, breaches these policies, or cannot be assessed for want of a suitable reviewer.
• Acceptance is never guaranteed at any stage, and no fee secures it.
• Correspondence should quote the paper ID; messages without one take longer to trace.

Disclaimer

The views and findings expressed in published articles are those of their authors. Publication indicates that the work passed peer review and editorial assessment; it is not an endorsement by the journal, its editors or its reviewers of the authors' conclusions.

The journal is not liable for consequences arising from the use of published content. Readers applying published methods or findings in practice should exercise their own professional judgement. External links are provided for convenience, and the journal does not control or take responsibility for the content of external sites.

Complaints and Appeals

Authors who believe a decision rested on a factual error or a misunderstanding of the work may appeal. Write to the editorial office within a reasonable period of the decision, quote the paper ID, and set out specifically what was misunderstood and why, with evidence.

• Appeals are considered by an editor not involved in the original decision where that is possible.
• Further independent review may be sought.
• The outcome of an appeal is final.
• Disagreement with a reviewer's judgement, on its own, is not grounds for appeal.

Complaints about editorial process, conduct, or the handling of a manuscript should be sent to the same address and will be acknowledged and investigated.

Policy FAQ

Policy Contact