Leveraging IRINS and Vidwan to Strengthen Institutional Research Ecosystems: A Case Study

Abstract

This paper discusses different ways that the national research information systems of India, “Indian Research Information Network System” (IRINS) and Vidwan, both created by the INFLIBNET under the UGC, could improve research perceptibility and increase institutional capabilities at emerging higher education institutions in India. This research aims to determine the contribution of these systems to encouraging faculty participation, collecting evidence of scholarly output, and enabling researchers to manage research with evidence. A mixed-methods approach was employed; quantitative data were gathered from the IRINS portal for Tamralipta Mahavidyalaya, one example of an emerging institution, consisting of 110 faculty profiles and 754 records of scholarly output across all disciplines. Qualitative evaluations were also carried out to assess usability, interoperability and data accuracy. Diverse results indicate that there is high registration of faculty members in both IRINS and Vidwan portals. The journal publications are the most common type of output. There is an increasing trend towards adoption of open-access models, and there is a high level of faculty engagement in using Mendeley and other altmetric platforms. These results suggest that there is an increasing culture of transparency and collaboration in research dissemination in India. This study is useful for policymakers as it demonstrates how structured digital profiles can prepare institutions for accreditation and funding, whose originality lies in its provision of a model for colleges having limited resources. These types of colleges use IRINS and Vidwan to improve their research visibility for the development of a sustainable research ecosystem.