The Indian Express · 11 Aug 2026
India places 110 universities in THE Sustainability Rankings 2026
India has 110 universities featured in the Times Higher Education (THE) Sustainability Rankings 2026, making it the second-most represented country globally. The rankings assessed 1,646 universities across 116 countries and territories on their contribution to the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Lovely Professional University was India's highest-ranked institution at 23rd overall, followed by Amrita Vishwa Vidyapeetham at joint 37th and JSS Academy of Higher Education and Research at joint 74th.
Why it matters
India's strong representation in the rankings indicates that sustainability is becoming an increasingly visible dimension of institutional performance in higher education. The rankings go beyond traditional measures of academic and research performance by assessing how universities contribute to broader social, economic and environmental goals through the 17 SDGs.
The performance of Indian institutions across individual SDG categories is particularly notable. Manipal Academy of Higher Education ranked first globally for SDG 5 (Gender Equality), while Lovely Professional University ranked first for SDG 7 (Affordable and Clean Energy). These results demonstrate that Indian institutions can achieve global recognition for specific areas of sustainability even when their overall rankings differ.
The results also provide institutions with another benchmark for evaluating their contribution to sustainability. As universities increasingly integrate sustainability into campus operations, research, teaching and community engagement, such rankings can provide comparative indicators of progress and highlight areas where institutions can strengthen their impact.
Source: The Indian Express (opens in a new tab)
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Quality Assurance & Continuous Improvement8