Indian Universities Adopt Swedish ML Tool To Check Plagiarism In Academic Research

In a move to promote originality of thought and innovation, the Indian Union Ministry of Human Resource Development (MHRD) has awarded a nationwide contract to Swedish company Urkund to provide their machine learning-powered tool for checking plagiarism. The Indian government seeks to enhance the quality of research within the country's academic institutions by deterring research misconduct and plagiarism. Speaking to the Central Advisory Board of Education, Union Human Resource Minister, Ramesh Pokhriyal, said in a statement, "The software will significantly help to improve the quality of research outcome by ensuring the originality of ideas and publication of the research scholars." Urkund's long-standing local partner, eGalactic, was instrumental in the tender process, gaining the commitment and trust by the Indian government. With its 1,045 institutions, the onboarding program was of unprecedented proportions gathering institutions from all geographical regions of India at 5 locations over 2 weeks. "We're incredibly proud to be entrusted to help improve education quality in India, the world's largest democracy," comments Andreas Ohlson, Chief Executive Officer at Urkund. "Also, the tender itself is a great sign of governmental responsibility and oversight for the challenge of countering plagiarism. I must say it brought the best solutions to the table with what I believe are the toughest technological requirements I've seen to date." The tender was initiated by MHRD entrusting Information and Library Network Centre (INFLIBNET), an Inter-University Centre of the University Grants Commission (UGC), with the tender and procurement process.