According to the UGC guidelines on Plagiarism, up to what percentage of…
2024
According to the UGC guidelines on Plagiarism, up to what percentage of similarity of text does not invite penalty?
Answer: A. 10 percent — Concept: Indian higher education does not treat every textual overlap as punishable plagiarism. The UGC (Promotion of Academic Integrity and Prevention of…
- A.
10 percent
- B.
16 percent
- C.
25 percent
- D.
40 percent
Show answer & explanation
Correct answer: A
Concept: Indian higher education does not treat every textual overlap as punishable plagiarism. The UGC (Promotion of Academic Integrity and Prevention of Plagiarism in Higher Educational Institutions) Regulations, 2018 grade plagiarism by a measured percentage of text similarity, computed by a similarity-checking tool after excluding properly quoted and attributed matter, the bibliography and references, and small standard phrases. The scheme opens with a de minimis band — similarity so small that it is recorded as minor and carries no penalty at all — and then defines successively higher bands, each with a heavier prescribed penalty.
Applying it here: The stem asks for the ceiling of that de minimis band. In the 2018 Regulations the lowest band is Level 0, defined as similarity of text up to 10 percent; similarity within it is recorded as minor similarities and invites no penalty. The percentage asked for is therefore 10 percent.
Cross-check: The complete graded scheme in the Regulations, with the penalty prescribed for a student author, reads:
Level | Similarity of text | Prescribed action for a student author |
|---|---|---|
Level 0 | Up to 10% | Minor similarities — no penalty |
Level 1 | Above 10% and up to 40% | Submit a revised script within six months |
Level 2 | Above 40% and up to 60% | Debarred from submitting a revised script for one year |
Level 3 | Above 60% | Registration for the programme cancelled |
Contrast: Only similarity at or below 10 percent sits in the penalty-free band. 16 percent and 25 percent both fall inside Level 1, while 40 percent sits at the very top of Level 1 — the boundary at which the penalty steps up to Level 2, not a penalty-free ceiling. A practical corollary: because correctly quoted and referenced matter is stripped out before the percentage is computed, a well-cited script normally stays well under even the Level 0 limit.