2 min readPatnaApr 28, 2026 08:34 PM IST
With just 88 of the 892 colleges in Bihar, and just three of the 15 universities having received a ranking from the National Assessment and Accreditation Council (NAAC) so far, Deputy Chief Minister Vijay Kumar Choudhary, who is also in charge of the Higher Education Department, has instructed all institutions to ensure that they get a ranking.
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NAAC accreditation is valid for five years, and an institution must submit documentation to start the process of further accreditation. NAAC rankings are an assessment of the quality of higher education institutions in the country. Each institution that is assessed is given either A++, A+, A, B++, B or C grade based on factors such as teaching quality, infrastructure, research and administration.
Patna Women’s College under Patna University is the only college in Bihar to get the highest A++ NAAC ranking. AN College in Patna, under Pataliputra University, has received an A+ ranking. Commerce, Arts and Science College, Patna, also under Pataliputra University, has an A ranking.
Eight institutions, including LN Mishra University in Darbhanga, have received a B++ ranking, and nine institutions, including Patna University, have received a B+. As many as 41 colleges have received a B, and 30 institutions, including Nalanda Open University, have received a C. Bihar has 272 constituent and 620 affiliated colleges.
While it is not legally mandatory for all higher education institutions to have NAAC accreditation, it is a requirement for UGC grants and some other government funding.
A senior official with the Higher Education Department said, “Our office has asked all institutions to apply for NAAC in May.” A Bihar Lok Bhavan official added, “All universities have been asked to mandate colleges under them to push for NAAC ranking.”
The Education Department official explained that the University Grants Commission (UGC) has been pushing for all higher education institutions to be accredited. “There is a sense of urgency for NAAC ranking as we are moving towards a new system under the ‘binary accreditation’ model (where colleges are simply marked ‘Accredited’ or ‘Not Accredited’), rather than the old CGPA-based grading system,” the official said.
