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Narayani
24 February, 2026
Did you know? In India, the number of fake universities has increased by 52.38%, from 21 in 2025 to 32 in 2026. The University Grants Commission has recently declared the list of fake universities in India. The list contains 32 fake universities that have been operating in major states of India. As per UGC fake universities 2026, Delhi & New Delhi have been found to top the list, followed by Uttar Pradesh.
UGC has released a statement, describing that these universities are neither recognised by the central government of India nor by state governments. Concerning Indian education, UGC has warned students, parents, and guardians to avoid taking admissions in these institutions. Let us quickly dive in to explore the UGC fake universities list. Learn about UGC, its significance in the fake universities list, and more. Discover some of the best tips to recognise fake universities in India.
UGC stands for the University Grants Commission. It is a statutory body established under the Ministry of Education in 1956. The objective of UGC is to regulate and maintain the standards of quality education across universities & HEIs (Higher Education Institutions) in India. The regulatory body plays a crucial role in making up the list of UGC universities. It provides approvals to the colleges & universities in India to offer recognised degrees by the central government of India. UGC is primarily responsible for granting recognition, providing educational funds, and maintaining quality education standards across universities.
Institutions approved by the UGC meet a specific academic & infrastructure criterion. The list of UGC-approved universities is updated frequently, adding freshly build institutes. Whereas, the UGC fake universities list is prepared to identify and reveal the fake universities in India, regulating independently with no recognition, masquerading as legitimate institutes. Fake universities are those that do not meet the standards of the UGC.
The UGC fake universities list 2026 has unveiled the 32 fake universities operating across 12 states in India. Of this, Delhi has the largest number of fake universities, with a number of 12. Uttar Pradesh, on the other hand, has 4 fake universities, of which one operates as an open university. The remaining ten states are found to have one or two fake universities, running without UGC approval. Check out the UGC fake universities list 2026 below:
The UGC fake universities list India involves those higher education institutes that appear to be legitimate but have no recognition. These institutions misuse terms such as “University”, “National”, “Bhartiya”, “Open University”, or “Deemed University” to seem recognised. As per the UGC Act of 1956, universities, which are approved by the UGC, can only grant UG or PG degrees to students.
The list of fake universities by UGC reveals those institutes that provide degrees without the recognition of UGC, making them invalid. UGC releases fake university lists every year, aiming to inform learners about the unauthorised and fake institutions. It is recommended to cross-check the university before taking the admissions. Continue reading to learn how to verify the UGC recognition of an institution.
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The University Grants Commission performs a thorough check on the universities operating in India. It investigates various crucial factors to prepare a UGC fake universities list every year. Here are some of the top factors that help UGC identify fake universities in India. Take a look:
✅ Check out the student & parent complaints
✅ Perform field inspections
✅ Verifies university & student documents
✅ Investigate records of previous registrations and approvals
After ensuring all these factors are met, if a university is found to offer degrees without UGC recognition, it is declared a fake university. These institutions are further added to the UGC fake universities list. This process is carried out to ensure that UGC-approved universities operate legitimately with honour in India.
Verifying the legitimacy of a university before enrollment is crucial to save yourself from regret and fraud. You can identify a fake university by checking its name on the official website of UGC. The portal comprises both the list of UGC-approved and fake universities. It is a vital and good practice to verify the university's status before admissions. Take a look at the several tips that may help you identify fake and valid universities:
📝 Always cross-check from the official website of the UGC.
📝 You must check both the approved & unapproved universities' lists for confirmation.
📝 Verify the university name on the internet.
📝 Look out for students, alumni, or parents' reviews.
📝 Ensure verifying each claim or recognition that a university boasts.
You can check out the UGC official website if your college name is listed in the UGC-approved institutions list. Here are the steps to verify a fake university in the UGC list. Take a look:
📝 Visit the official website of the UGC: ugc.gov.in.
📝 Locate the “Universities” section available on the home page.
📝 You need to click on the UGC University List & then check the UGC fake university list.
📝 Explore both the lists thoroughly to check whether your university name appears in any one of them.
📝 You can avoid university if its name appears on the fake university list.
📝 Proceed with the application process if the university is listed in the approved list of universities by UGC.
Yes, the University Grants Commission, or UGC, has provided recognition to various online degrees. UGC-approved institutions are allowed to offer online degrees in numerous disciplines. This includes arts and humanities, commerce, management, computer applications, and sciences. Moreover, as per UGC guidelines, UGC approved online degrees are equally valuable and legitimate as regular degree programmes.
However, technical/engineering and medical degrees that require hands-on working experience are not approved by the UGC to be delivered through the online mode. Several popular UGC-approved online degrees include online BA, online MA, online BCom, online MCom, online BBA, online MBA, online BCA, online MCA, online BSc, and online MSc. Here are several top online universities offering credible UGC-approved online degrees in India:
🎓 Amity University Online
🎓 Lovely Professional University Online
🎓 Chandigarh University Online
🎓 NMIMS Online
🎓 Amrita Vishwa Vidyapeetham (Amrita Online)
🎓 Chitkara University Online
🎓 Manipal Online
🎓 IGNOU
The UGC fake universities list for 2026 includes 32 universities in India. These universities have been operating across Delhi, Uttar Pradesh, Maharashtra, Jharkhand, Haryana, Karnataka, Kerala, West Bengal, Rajasthan, Puducherry, Arunachal Pradesh, and Andhra Pradesh. The list has been made public to spread awareness among students and parents seeking admission to these institutions. As the universities are labelled fake by the UGC, the courses and degrees from these institutes shall hold no value in India or abroad. Students are advised to verify their university or college before enrolment. Always use the official website of UGC to cross-check or verify the university.
To identify a fake university, you can check out the official website of UGC for approved and fake universities.
Yes, a degree approved by the UGC is legitimate and valid for higher education at other institutes and jobs in the government and private sectors.
Both UGC and AICTE are statutory bodies in India. While UGC provides recognition to offer valid degrees, AICTE approval is crucial for technical courses in IT and engineering. AICTE stands for All India Council for Technical Education, whereas UGC full form is University Grants Commission. Both regulatory bodies are part of the Ministry of Education.
Yes, UGC-approved degrees are valid abroad, provided that the degree is recognised and legitimate in India.
If your college is not approved by the UGC, then your degree or course of enrollment would hold no value among employers or other institutions for higher education. This is because in India, a degree not approved by the UGC is considered invalid and unauthorised.
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