ICMR impact scale may deter research in public interest

The Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) has proposed the Impact of Research and Innovation Scale (IRIS).
Purpose: To quantify the impact of biomedical, public health, and allied research funded by ICMR.
IRIS will be used to evaluate, fund, and prioritise research projects based on their “impact”.

A metric-based system that assigns “Publication Equivalents” (PEs) to various research outputs.
1 PE = Primary research paper or meta-analysis in peer-reviewed journals.
10 PEs = Paper cited in a public policy or guideline.
5 PEs = Patent granted.
20 PEs = Commercial product in use.

Create a standardised evaluation framework across disciplines.
Recognise non-academic forms of research impact (e.g., policy impact, product development).
Tie research impact assessment to funding decisions.

Standardisation of Impact:
- Uniform framework to evaluate research across diverse fields (biochemistry, public health, engineering).
Beyond Citations:
- Recognises real-world outcomes like policy influence, product deployment, and patents, not just academic publication count.
Funding Transparency:
- Links funding to measurable outcomes; helps prioritise impactful research.
Portfolio Diversification:
- May encourage researchers to work on non-traditional outputs like guidelines, devices, and community health innovations.

Lack of Theoretical Rigor:
- PE as a metric lacks robust theoretical justification.
- Influential non-empirical works (e.g., commentaries, conceptual papers) are assigned 0 PE — undervaluing foundational thinking.
Commercial Bias:
- Commercial devices (20 PEs) are rated higher than policy influence (10 PEs).
- Risks undermining public health initiatives and community-based research.
Ethical & Equity Risks:
- May pressure researchers toward commercial outcomes, away from public good-oriented research.
- Could worsen ethical practices, especially in India’s already fragile research ethics ecosystem.
Transparency Issues:
- No clear methodology or public data on how PEs were assigned.
- Lack of external peer review or Delphi method to arrive at consensus-based scoring.

Conduct a national Delphi study with researchers to assign PE values based on consensus.
Ensure full transparency of methodology and external validation.
Incorporate diverse indicators of impact: conceptual, policy, societal, and ethical.
Maintain balance between scientific rigour and public relevance.
Develop independent oversight mechanisms to monitor implementation.

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