New Delhi, Aug 2: The University Grants Commission (UGC) on Wednesday declared 20 universities as "fake" and not empowered to confer any degree with Delhi having eight such institutions, the highest.

"It has come to the notice of the UGC that a number of institutions are offering degrees in contrary to the provisions of the UGC Act. Degrees awarded by such universities shall neither be recognised nor valid for higher education or employment purpose. These universities are not empowered to confer any degree," UGC secretary Manish Joshi said.

Delhi has eight "fake" universities -- All India Institute of Public and Physical Health Sciences; Commercial University Ltd, Daryaganj; United Nations University; Vocational University; ADR-Centric Juridical University; Indian Institution of Science and Engineering; Viswakarma Open University for Self-Employment; and Adhyatmik Vishwavidyalaya (Spiritual University), according to the UGC.

Uttar Pradesh has four such universities Gandhi Hindi Vidyapith; National University of Electro Complex Homeopathy; Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose University (Open university); and Bhartiya Shiksha Parishad.

Karnataka, Maharashtra, Puducherry, Andhra Pradesh, West Bengal and Kerala also have "fake" universities, the UGC said.

Let the Truth be known. If you read VB and like VB, please be a VB Supporter and Help us deliver the Truth to one and all.



Jaipur (PTI): A student preparing for the NEET examination allegedly committed suicide by hanging himself in a rented room in Rajasthan's Sikar on Friday, police said.

According to the police, the student allegedly hanged himself from a ceiling fan using his sister's scarf while one sister was attending coaching classes and the other was in the bathroom.

He had appeared in the NEET UG exam 2026, which was cancelled due to paper leak, they said.

Udyog Nagar SHO Rajesh Kumar said that the deceased, identified as Pradeep Meghwal, was a resident of Kanika ki Dhani village in Jhunjhunu's Gudha Gaudji area.

He had been living in a rented room in Sikar's Jaldhari Nagar area with his two sisters while preparing for NEET over the last three years.

His elder sister later found him hanging and informed the landlord and police after bringing him down, officials said.

The SHO said the body was kept at SK Hospital mortuary, and a postmortem had not been conducted.

The student's father, Rajesh Kumar Meghwal, told police that Pradeep's NEET examination had gone well and the family was expecting him to score around 650 marks.

Former Rajasthan deputy chief minister Sachin Pilot expressed grief over the incident and linked it to anxiety among students after reports of irregularities and paper leaks in NEET 2026.

Pilot said repeated paper leak incidents and cancellation of examinations were affecting students' mental health and demanded a time-bound investigation and strict action against those responsible.