Vision and Mission

The Research Division of Tribhuvan University, located within the University Central Office, was established in 1974. It was later renamed and restructured as the Research Directorate under the Rector's Office on May 15, 2015. The Directorate serves as the secretariat of the Research Coordination and Development Council (RCDC), which consists of twenty-seven members, including Deans, Executive Directors, Department Heads, Campus Chiefs, experienced professors, and research organizations of the government. The council is headed by the Rector of Tribhuvan University. The Directorate is an administrative apex body for academic research and acts as a research hub, which is responsible for regulating research activities, formulating research policies, and coordinating research-related tasks across all faculties, institutes, research centres, central departments, departments, master's programs, and campuses. It also monitors research performance, ensures quality, and promotes sustainability in the research activities of the university. Its primary policy is to promote the generation of new knowledge in interdisciplinary and multidisciplinary research areas that would be helpful in the development of the country. Furthermore, the Directorate is committed to creating a research-friendly environment at Tribhuvan University through fostering excellence in research, organizing workshops and seminars, facilitating coordination and networking among researchers, and engaging students, researchers, and faculty members of the university in fundamental, as well as applied and collaborative research activities. It provides opportunities for faculty members to carry out mini-research projects, collaborative research, and research projects on national priority areas. Additionally, the Directorate coordinates research projects sponsored by external clients. It also supports students' research activities through dissertation grants. The faculty and staff members of the Directorate possess extensive experience in various research fields such as Science and Technology, Engineering, Forestry, Agriculture and Animal Sciences, Medicine, Humanities and Social Sciences, Management, Education, and Law. Since its establishment, the Directorate has been well-known for its interdisciplinary and multidisciplinary research activities.

In the context of the changes that have brought a world-class University, the Directorate has been about in the University to uplift its ranking a given the responsibility to secure research funding from the government and facilitate Memorandums of Understanding (MoUs) with government research organizations. These efforts aim to engage TU faculty members and students in research and provide financial support to them. Furthermore, the Directorate also carries out responsibilities outlined in the management system of the Research Directorate, TU 2072 B.S.(2015).

Goals

The Directorate has the following specific goals that aim to advance research and development activities at TU:

• Facilitating TU faculty members, students, and other national and international agencies in conducting various types of research, ranging from mini-research to national priority areas projects.
• Organizing workshops and seminars on research methodology and concurrent government sector policies.
• Coordinating research activities with national and international, governmental and governmental agencies through Memoranda of Understanding (MoUs) and Government-to-Government (G to G) research strategies.
• Publishing T TU Journal, including various types of articles(multidisciplinary).
• Establishing TU as a centre of excellence through research and development.

Research Activities

The Directorate has started providing different types of research grants. These include i) Small research grants, ii) National Priority Area Research (NPAR) Grants, iii) Research Endowment Fund. The NPAR grant has four categories, ranging from one million to one ten million per project.

Small Research Project: One of the key research initiatives of the Directorate is the research capacity building of young and newly introduced faculty members and staff at TU by awarding mini-research grants each year since its establishment. The number and the amount of the grant are determined by the working committee of RCDC. Over time, these numbers have been gradually increasing to adapt to the changing scenario. This grant's sum has increased to two hundred thousand rupees during the fiscal year 2079–2080. Thirty researchers have received awards and submitted their completed projects. Seventy-one researchers had submitted proposals for the requested projects for the fiscal year 2080–2081; Thirty researchers had received awards for that fiscal year. For the fiscal year 2081-82, one hundred forty-three researchers have submitted proposals for the projects, thirty researchers have been awarded the projects.

Research Endowment Fund: For the first time in the history of TU, an initiative has been launched in the form of a Collaborative and Thesis/Dissertation Grant under the Research Endowment Fund generated from the interest accrued on fixed deposits. It aims to promote high-level academic research and interdisciplinary and multidisciplinary research to address national priority research issues in the country. Collaborative research grants and thesis/dissertation research grants are the two categories of research grants that the Directorate began to issue under the Research Endowment Fund. This covers master's, Ph.D., and M.Phil. Degrees. This project is part of a yearly research program that TU faculty and students can participate in. During the fiscal year 2078–79, grants for five collaborative research projects, ten doctoral theses, and fifteen master's dissertations were awarded. Following a lapse of one year, the Directorate was requested to submit research proposals for five collaborative research grants, eighteen Ph.D. thesis grants, five M.Phil. grants, and fifty master's dissertation grants for the fiscal year 2080–2081. After evaluation, five collaborative research grants, eighteen Ph.D. thesis grants, two M.Phil. grants, and fifty master's dissertation grants have been distributed.

National Priority Areas Research: It is one of the most important grant types introduced in the fiscal year 2077/78. This grant is managed from the research fund of the Government through the University Grants Commission, Nepal. This grant aims to carry out high-quality research in the priority areas of the government as specified in the current Five-Year Plan and other policies. It aims to carry out high-quality research and publication, and provide evidence-based policy feedback to the government. There are four different categories, namely i) Emerging Faculty Research Grant (EFRG), ii) Major Research Grant (MRG), iii) Excellence Research Grant (ERG), and iv) Innovative Research Grant (IRG). The grant amounts are one million rupees (EFRG), two million rupees (MRG), five million rupees (ERG), and ten million rupees (IRG) for different categories. In total, 17 projects were granted funding in 2077–78, and 11 projects in 2078–79. It has granted funding to thirty research projects in the categories of EFRG, MRG, and ERG for the fiscal year 2079–80. Furthermore, three projects have received funding in the Innovative Research Grant category. From the fiscal year 2077-78, three final reports have been received after the completion of the dissemination workshop, and four draft reports have been presented by the researchers and are ready for the dissemination workshop. For the fiscal year 2080-81, one hundred three research proposals have been received, evaluation process is underway. Further, the research directorate has requested to submit a research proposal for the fiscal year 2081-82.

Research Publications

Tribhuvan University Journal (TUJ): The Directorate publishes Tribhuvan University Journal (TUJ), which is a multidisciplinary double-blind peer-reviewed journal. The journal is published biannually in June and December. TUJ is indexed in NepJOL (https:// www.nepjol.info/index.php/TUJ), and the journal archive can be accessed on the NepJOL website. TUJ is now eligible for single star, and the formal process to get single star is going on. TUJ published Volume 39, Numbers 1 (June 2024) and 2 (December 2024), which included thirty-seven academic research articles across a range of subject areas. At the moment, TUJ is a JPPS-compliant journal where every paper has a DOI number. Research articles have been received for TUJ Volume 40, Number 1 (June 2025), and the review procedure is presently in progress. 

Research Workshops

Research Interaction Workshop: The Research Directorate has been organizing research and interaction workshops regularly. In this context, it organized a half-day workshop in June 2022 at the Rector's Office with the faculties enrolled under the fast-track program at TU. The newly appointed faculty members, based on academic merit, participated and discussed the research policies and research funding opportunities at TU. Similarly, a half-day research interaction workshop was organized at Hotel Yellow Pagoda, Jamal on March 18, 2022. The workshop was attended by distinguished authorities of Tribhuvan University, including the Vice-Chancellor, Rector, and Registrar. Additionally, there were forty delegates present, Executive Directors of Research Centers, members of including deans, members of the Expert Group, the Research Policy Formulation Draft Committee, members of the Ethical Review Guidelines Draft Committee, and members of the National Priority Area Research Procedure and Guideline Formulation Draft Committee. The workshop's agenda focused on discussing the challenges faced during the launch of the National Priority Areas Research initiative. The difficulties faced by researchers, reviewers focused particularly on addressing the concerns and the overall administrative and documentation process. The workshop revised the working procedure to ensure smoother implementation and broader coverage of the research initiative. The Directorate has organized a two-day workshop at the Central Library on September 21 and 22, 2023, with the theme "Improving Journal Management." Thirty participants from different departments and campuses who oversee the editing of their journals received training from three experts.

Regional Level Research Methodology Workshop:

With the objective of disseminating skills and knowledge of research methodology at the regional level of the country, several workshops are being launched to orient and equip both teachers and staff members of the campuses with various components of research.

This year, the TU Grassroots Community of Scholars (TU-GCS) was encouraged to initiate a 3-month research capacity-building workshop. The workshop aimed to help young and novice researchers and faculty of TU and beyond in successfully writing research proposals and manuscripts for publication in standard journals. The workshop was conducted virtually on a volunteer basis, serving as an example of successful experimentation with a volunteer model of professional development, networking, and support in academia.

Policy Workshop

A policy workshop was jointly organized by the Research Directorate, the Secretariat of RCDC, and the Policy Research Institute (PRI) on April 20, 2021. The workshop was attended by all 27 members of RCDC from TU, along with the members of the research expert group. The main objective of the workshop was to critically analyse the various dimensions of the National Research Policy 2077, which was drafted for the first time by the National Planning Commission (NPC), and discuss its successful implementation. During the workshop, three key expert speakers, Prof. Dr. Pitamber Sharma, Prof. Dr. Pushkar Bajracharya, and Prof. Dr. Pramod K Jha, along with the members of RCDC, presented twenty-two points/comments as inputs, suggestions, and feedback for the improvement of the policy and to make it executable. These suggestions were later submitted to Prof. Dr. Puspa Raj Kadel, the Honorable Vice-Chair of the National Planning Commission.

Policy Document Preparation

Tribhuvan University Research Policy:

A five-member Research Policy Formulation Draft Committee was formed, headed by Emeritus Prof. Dr. Ram Prasad Chaudhary. The committee consisted of members Prof. Dr. Rejina Maskey, Prof. Dr. Mahanand Chalise, Prof. Dr. Pushpa Kamal Subedi, and the Executive Director of the Research Directorate as the member secretary. The committee has submitted the draft policy to the Chair of the Research Coordination and Development Council (RCDC) and the Rector of Tribhuvan University. Furthermore, it was sent to the members of the Research Expert Group for their comments and suggestions. The policy now requires broader consultation among stakeholders before its finalization.

Formation of Ethical Review Board and Preparation of Ethical Review Guideline: Tribhuvan University formulated the Research Ethics Review Operational Procedure, which was approved by the TU Executive Council in 2078 BS, and established an Ethical Review Board (ERB) in 2079 BS following the provisions outlined in the operational procedure. ERB is established under the Office of the Rector of TU and has its secretariat in the Research Directorate. ERB-TU consists of seven members appointed by the TU Executive Council. The current board members are as follows:

Chairperson - Prof. Dr. Deepak Aryal, Central Department of Hydrology and Meteorology, TU

Member - Prof. Dr. Chitra Bahadur Budhathoki, Central Department of Education, TU

Member - Prof. Dr. Sushan Acharya, Central Department of Education, TU

Member - Prof. Dr. Mohan Raj Sharma, Institute of Medicine, TU

Member Dr. Meghnath Dhimal, Nepal Health Research Council, Government of Nepal

Member Ms. Shuva Laxmi Shakya, Deputy Mayor, Kirtipur Municipality

Member Secretary - Prof. Dr. Ishwar Koirala, Director, Research Directorate, TU

Problems and Way Forward

In the ever-changing scenarios, the Research Directorate's role and responsibilities have expanded due to the active functioning of RCDC as the apex body of TU Research. Consequently, the Research Directorate, serving as the secretariat of RCDC, needs to be reoriented and fully equipped in terms of administrative and financial aspects to effectively carry out all research activities, publications, and workshops in a timely, efficient, and sustainable manner. Currently, the Directorate lacks essential resources, such as fast internet connectivity, IT-friendly research faculty and staff, and most importantly, infrastructure (digital equipment) necessary for a research-friendly, Central Level University Research Coordinating Agency (CLURCA) to handle its expanded responsibilities. Likewise, the Directorate needs to increase the annual funding budget. In this digital era, the Directorate must have its own Video Conferencing Hall, equipped with instruments, and a Website Portal for disseminating all research activities and publications to a global audience. Furthermore, the Directorate still needs to work to enhance the research culture in the university and to upgrade the quality of the TU Journal.

Prof. Ishwar Koirala, PhD
Director, Research Directorate 
Rector’s Office
Kirtipur, Kathmandu Nepal
Phone:  977-01-4331867
Fax: 977-01-4331964
Email: research@tribhuvan-university.edu.np