Terms & Conditions

Terms & Conditions

By accessing this website, submitting a manuscript, or utilizing any services provided by the Journal, you (the “User” or “Author”) agree to be legally bound by these Terms & Conditions. These Terms constitute a binding agreement between the User and the Publisher.

1. User and Author Responsibilities

• Account Integrity: Users are responsible for maintaining the confidentiality of login credentials and all activities conducted under their account.
• Accuracy of Information: Authors must ensure that all contact details, institutional affiliations, and co-author information provided during submission are accurate and verified.
• Originality & Authority: The submitting author warrants that they possess full authorization from all co-authors and that the manuscript is original.
• Prohibited Use: Users shall not use the Journal platform to distribute defamatory, infringing, or otherwise unlawful material.
• AI Disclosure: Authors must explicitly disclose the use of Generative AI tools in the preparation of the manuscript. Failure to disclose may be treated as a breach of academic integrity.

2. Copyright and Licensing Policy

• Rights Transfer / Licensing: Upon acceptance, authors may be required to sign a Copyright Transfer Agreement or publish under a Creative Commons (CC) license, as determined by the Journal.
• Proprietary Rights: The website design, branding, logo, and aggregated content are the exclusive property of the Publisher and protected under international intellectual property laws.
• Metadata Rights: The Publisher retains perpetual rights to use manuscript metadata (including titles, abstracts, and citations) for indexing, archiving, database inclusion, and promotional purposes.

3. Peer Review & Editorial Decisions

• Editorial Independence: The Editor-in-Chief and Editorial Board have full authority over editorial decisions. Submitting a manuscript does not guarantee publication.
• Confidentiality: The review process is confidential. Reviewers are strictly prohibited from utilizing Generative AI tools to summarize or critique manuscripts or sharing unpublished work with third parties.

4. Plagiarism and Ethical Integrity Policy

• Strict Compliance: All submissions are governed by the Journal Plagiarism Policy. Any violation, including data fabrication or mosaic plagiarism, will result in immediate sanctions as defined in our Plagiarism Threshold Table.
• Sanction Authority: The Publisher reserves the right to notify an author’s institution or professional body in cases of proven misconduct.

5. Manuscript Withdrawal Policy

• Manuscript withdrawals are strictly governed by the Withdrawal Policy. Formal, signed requests are mandatory.
• Unethical withdrawals (e.g., after significant peer-review resources have been spent) may result in author debarment.

6. Fees, Payments and Refund Policy

• Payment Obligation: Authors agree to pay the Article Processing Charge (APC) as specified.
• Refund Conditions: All financial transactions are subject to the Journal Refund Policy, which includes a mandatory minimum 40% variable service deduction for requests made before publication.
• Non-Refundable: No refunds are provided for Fast-Track publications or post-publication retractions due to misconduct

7. Limitation of Liability (Protective Clauses)

i). Service Provided “AS IS”

The Publisher provides the website and publication services on an "as is" and "as available" basis without any warranties of any kind, express or implied.

ii). Exclusion of Damages

In no event shall the Publisher, Editors, Reviewers, Directors, Officers, Employees or Staff be liable for any indirect, incidental, special or consequential damages, including loss of reputation, lost profits or data loss arising from the publication or rejection of a manuscript.

iii). Limitation Based on Content Risks: The Publisher disclaims all liability regarding:

• Factual Accuracy and Research Integrity: The responsibility for research validity rests solely with the authors. The Journal is not liable for errors in data or scientific conclusions.
• Social and Cultural Sensitivity: The Journal is not liable for how published content is interpreted by different social or cultural groups.
• Religious and Political Neutrality: The Journal maintains a neutral stance. Authors are solely responsible for ensuring their work does not violate political or religious sensibilities.
• Impact on Public Sentiment: The Publisher is not liable for any public outcry, negative sentiment or legal action resulting from the author’s published findings or opinions.

iv). Aggregate Liability Cap

To the maximum extent permitted by law, the total aggregate liability of the Publisher for any claim arising out of or related to the Services shall not exceed the Article Processing Charge (APC) actually paid by the Author for the specific service in question.

8. Indemnification

Users agree to indemnify, defend and hold harmless the Publisher, Editors, Reviewers, Directors, Officers, Employees or Staff from any third-party claims, liabilities or legal expenses (including attorney fees) arising from the User's breach of these terms or any infringement of intellectual property.

9. Publisher Rights & Legal Defense

• Right to Refuse: The Publisher reserves the right to reject or remove any content for any reason, including ethical concerns or technical quality.
• Data Retention: As per the Journal Privacy Policy, the Publisher reserves the right to retain integrity investigation data and financial records indefinitely under our 'Legal Defense & Jurisdictional Rights' to prevent future malpractice.
• Right to Restrict Deletion: In cases of active misconduct investigations, the Publisher may restrict a User’s right to request data deletion to preserve the permanent scholarly record.
• Retraction: The Publisher reserves the right to retract published work if it is found to violate ethical standards or contains significant errors, in accordance with COPE Guidelines. No refunds are provided for retracted work.
• AI Mandate: The Publisher may restrict the use of Generative AI by reviewers to protect author intellectual property.

10. General Provisions

• Termination: The Publisher may terminate a User’s access to the services immediately if these Terms are breached.
• Amendments and Updates: The Publisher reserves the right to update these Terms at any time. Continued use of the service following updates constitutes acceptance of the new Terms.
• Governing Law: These Terms shall be governed by the laws of India. Any disputes shall be subject to the exclusive jurisdiction of the competent courts in Delhi, India.
• Force Majeure: The Publisher shall not be liable for any delay or failure to perform its obligations (including website downtime or publication delays) resulting from causes beyond its reasonable control, including but not limited to acts of God, war, pandemic, strikes or technical failures of internet service providers.

11. Policy Integration

These Terms & Conditions must be read in conjunction with the following documents, which are incorporated herein by reference: : i) Plagiarism Policy, ii) Withdrawal Policy, iii) Refund Policy, iv) Privacy Policy

Policy
By clicking "Accept," "Submit," or by making a payment, you acknowledge that you have read, understood and agreed to these Terms & Conditions