Policies

Tamilmanam International Research Journal of Tamil Studies (TIRJTS) is a monthly published, peer-reviewed, open-access, multidisciplinary, scholarly journal available in electronic format. It is issued a unique ISSN by the Indian ISSN Agency and is published by the Department of Library at Nallamuthu Gounder Mahalingam College, with sponsorship funding. The journal is accessible and distributable for free in electronic form through its official website, NGMC.AC.IN’ Journal Management System (www.ngmc.ac.in). All board positions, roles, and responsibilities are honorary and voluntary, without remuneration. Expense reimbursements may be granted with prior written approval from the Editorial Chairperson. All stakeholders are expected to adhere to the Journal’s Code-of-Conduct.

The TIRJTS scope encompasses the constitution of the journal and outlines various policies, procedures, guidelines, templates, standards, code-of-conduct, and other rules, regulations, terms, and conditions for all journal functions.

This document serves as an indicative guide for the journal’s constitutional workings, but it is not exhaustive. It is supported by various associative documents found on its annexure, official website, Journal Management System, or the websites of sponsors, associates, distributors, partners, and others. The document should be followed with common ethics and cooperative senses of responsibility to achieve the organization’s goals. The Chairperson’s Office and the Editorial Chairperson reserve the right to make changes to this or associated documents without prior notice. The current version of the information available on the official website should be referenced for any purposes. For inquiries or notifications, please contact editor@tamilmanam.in.

Prepared by : S.VEERAKANNAN, Editor, Tamilmanam International Research Journal of Tamil Studies

The Journal: Tamilmanam International Research Journal of Tamil Studies (TIRJTS)

The Tamilmanam International Research Journal of Tamil Studies (TIRJTS) is a monthly, peer-reviewed (refereed), open-access, multidisciplinary scholarly journal. It is available in both print and electronic formats, and holds a unique ISSN issued by the Indian ISSN Agency.

Electronic ISSN: 3049-0723
Print-ISSN: [Pending/Not Available]
Abbreviation: TIRJTS
Other Representations: Tamilmanam Int. Res. J. Tamil Stud.

1.1 Inception History TIRJTS first commenced publication in October 2024. Its sequential and chronological designation, “Vol. 1 No. 1 2024,” has been consistently applied to all subsequent issues. Initially, the journal utilized a professional open-source Journal Management System (OJS) with WordPress CMS handling the front-end.

1.2 Aim and Scope Detailed information regarding the journal’s aim and scope can be found at: https://tamilmanam.in/about-the-journal/

1.3 About The Publisher The primary publisher and owner of TIRJTS is Veerakannan S, who is responsible for securing and managing the journal’s financial resources.

Publisher’s Website: www.ngmclibrary.in
Journal URL: www.tamilmanam.in
Parent Organization Website: www.ngmc.ac.in

1.4 Journal Management System

The electronic version of TIRJTS is regularly published using the OJS Journal Management System (available at https://pkp.sfu.ca/software/ojs/download/), which has been enhanced with various additional plugins and scripts. TIRJTS efficiently communicates submission status throughout the publishing workflow. Authors receive an immediate automated acknowledgment upon successful submission, serving as the initial official response from the journal.

2. Roles and Responsibilities

This section outlines the criteria for contributors and the roles within the Tamilmanam International Research Journal of Tamil Studies (TIRJTS) boards.

2.1 Contributor Criteria

Work Submitter

The Work Submitter is the individual who submits content to TIRJTS for publishing consideration. This person accepts all terms and conditions on behalf of all relevant stakeholders, representing the entire team responsible for the content. The submitter is accountable for securing necessary permissions, providing all declarations on behalf of creators and owners, and ensuring all authors and translators are accurately added with their required information in the Journal Management System. This includes supplying comprehensive metadata such as authors’ affiliations, funding agencies, subjects of study, keywords, references (with appropriate DOI/links), abstract, title, subtitle, and all other details as requested. Content must be submitted using the appropriate template.

Author(s)

TIRJTS confers authorship based on original creation, substantial contribution to the article’s content or design, and/or assigned accountability for the work’s results. Co-authorship is granted for significant guidance provided to the work or for arranging essential approvals and agreements for publication. The team of co-authors must be able to mutually identify the individual responsible and accountable for each part of the published work.

Non-Author Contributors

Individuals who do not meet the criteria for “Author(s)” are considered non-author contributors. This may include, but is not limited to, funders, translators, and editors who have supported the authors in creating the work or its formatted manuscript. Appropriate acknowledgments should be given to non-author contributors, either in a dedicated manuscript section or, for translators, directly credited within the Journal Management System.

2.2 Journal Boards

Editorial Chairperson (EC)

The Editorial Chairperson is the primary and most influential contact for all TIRJTS affairs, responsible for the journal’s overall success and long-term strategic policies. The EC appoints and replaces governing board members, informs them of their roles and duties, and actively coordinates with them and the publisher. This coordination includes sharing updates on key performance indicators, journal statistics, arranging meetings, analyzing the competitive landscape, and developing content ideas. The EC also oversees special issue planning, publishing ethics, and the resolution of complaints under the publishing ethics code. As head of the Governing Board, the EC can suspend or dismiss any board member for proven misconduct, inadequate performance, delays, disagreements on direction, or inappropriate behavior.

Editorial Directors (ED)

As part of the Governing Board, Editorial Directors collectively form the Board of Directors. They are responsible for guiding all board members in global publicity, marketing, and distribution of the journal. Editorial Directors collaborate closely with the Editorial Chairperson, sharing responsibility for the journal’s success. They enhance the journal’s profile through digital channels, including websites, social media, RSS feeds, search engine optimization, and email communications. EDs are expected to coordinate with research scholars, mentors, institutions, and organizations to solicit contributions and facilitate journal distribution.

Chief Editorial Officers (CEO)

Chief Editorial Officers support the Governing Board alongside Editorial Directors. They assist the Editorial Chairperson and Editorial Directors in appointing and replacing editorial, advisory, and reviewer board members, and coordinate actively with them and the publisher. With the Editorial Chairperson’s approval, CEOs are responsible for defining and updating the Editorial Board’s (EB) structure, roles, and responsibilities. One CEO, nominated by the EC, is specifically responsible for administrating TIRJTS

Journal Organizational Structure

The journal’s operations are guided by several key boards and roles:

Editorial Board (EB) The Editorial Board (EB), also known as the Board of Editors, is the central body responsible for the journal’s publication process. It is overseen by the Office of the CEO and comprises the Editor-in-Chief, Chief Managing Editor, Managing Editors, and the Editorial Annexure (which includes Senior Associate Editors and Associate Editors).
Editor-in-Chief: The Editor-in-Chief holds ultimate responsibility for the timely publication of high-quality journal issues. They lead the Editorial Board, coordinate with all team members, and provide final consent on manuscript acceptance or rejection.
Chief Managing Editor: The Chief Managing Editor provides primary support to the Editor-in-Chief, sharing key responsibilities. This role involves leading the Editorial Board and coordinating with Managing Editors to ensure the successful and timely completion of all journal sections. In consultation with the Editor-in-Chief, the Chief Managing Editor also advises on the structural design and content layout of each issue, including proposed additions, deletions, or modifications to sections.
Board of Managing Editors: Headed by the Chief Managing Editor, the Managing Editors are crucial to the journal’s operational flow. They are responsible for planning the issue layout and providing manuscript comments to the Editor-in-Chief, often based on review inputs gathered via Associate Editors. Managing Editors typically oversee specific subject areas or sections of the journal, guided by the Editor-in-Chief and relevant subject matter experts. They are assigned manuscripts via the journal’s management system and are responsible for selecting and assigning reviewers, consolidating review comments, making initial manuscript selection decisions, and allocating accepted manuscripts to appropriate issues.
Editorial Annexure (EA): The Editorial Annexure (EA), also referred to as the Board of Associate Editors, comprises Senior Associate Editors and Associate Editors. This board provides essential assistance to the Managing Editors in preparing publishable journal issues. Members may be consulted for their specialized advice and support based on their areas of expertise as needed.
Advisory Board – The Advisory Board offers independent and transparent guidance to the Governing Board, CEO, and Editorial Board, ensuring the journal effectively meets its objectives and mission. This board includes a Chief Advisor, Senior Advisors, and Advisors. The Chief Advisor leads the board, leveraging the expertise of other members to advice on journal operations.
Reviewer Board – The Reviewer Board conducts peer reviews of assigned manuscripts, providing detailed comments using the journal’s template. Reviewers are expected to focus solely on the manuscript’s content and its contribution to the field and society (positive or negative), rather than on the author’s background or proficiency. While reviewer feedback is a critical component, the Editor-in-Chief retains final authority on manuscript acceptance or rejection. This decision considers multiple factors, including peer review, topical criticality, and alignment with the journal’s scope, and is binding for all parties.

3. Appointment and Dismissal Procedure of Board Members

At the Tamilmanam International Research Journal of Tamil Studies (TIRJTS), the appointment and dismissal of board members are determined through evaluations conducted by a panel of independent experts.

The Board-Selection-Panel (BSP) is constituted and led by the Editorial Chairperson every three years (triennially), or as required by other board members. The selection process involves several key steps:

The Editorial Chairperson periodically solicits nominations for reconstituting the journal’s boards through defined channels, including official emails, postal mail, and social media groups.
A comprehensive multi-parameter quantitative and qualitative comparative matrix is prepared to rank the nominated candidates.
Parameters for evaluation may include, but are not limited to, research/academic experience, h-index, and the availability of verifiable research profiles (e.g., ORCID, SCOPUS, Google Scholar).
Selection decisions are made without bias based on region, religion, gender, color, or other physical characteristics.
Potential conflicts of interest and other risks are thoroughly evaluated during BSP discussions.
Scores are assigned for each parameter, and a draft board structure is developed based on the resulting rankings.
This draft structure is then presented to the Editorial Chairperson for final review and approval.
Once approved, the final board structure is announced, and selected members receive official communications outlining their specific roles, responsibilities, rights, and duties.

4. Code of Ethics

The Tamilmanam International Research Journal of Tamil Studies (TIRJTS) is committed to upholding the highest ethical standards. We recognize that manuscripts are the cornerstone of this knowledge platform, representing the invaluable research and achievements of authors. As such, TIRJTS accepts full ethical responsibility for the confidentiality, integrity, and respectful handling of all submitted manuscripts.

Understanding the sensitivity of research content and the collaborative nature of its creation (involving authors, co-authors, translators, funders, and other associated individuals/teams/institutions), TIRJTS emphasizes the necessity of ethical conduct for all stakeholders—authors, reviewers, editors, coordinators, and those involved in archiving and distribution—throughout the entire publication, indexing, and distribution process.

4.1 Code of Ethics for Authors

Authors submitting to TIRJTS are expected to adhere to the following ethical guidelines:

Originality and Accuracy: Authors are ethically responsible for the originality of content, correctness of results, and authenticity of all resources used. They must avoid plagiarism, redundant information, and misleading presentation of content.
Attribution and Copyright: Authors must ethically respect copyrights, patents, acknowledgements, references, disclosures, and conflicts of interest where applicable. Credit should only be claimed for original work produced by the authors themselves.
Citations: Authors must properly cite and acknowledge the work of others, as well as their own related, previously published work used as reference in the currently submitted manuscript. It is solely the authors’ responsibility, not the journal’s editorial or review team, to ensure that all relevant prior research outcomes and discoveries are appropriately acknowledged with original citations.
Original and Unpublished Work: Only original and unpublished works should be submitted to the journal. No part of the manuscript should have been previously published in print or online (as a peer-reviewed article, non-peer-reviewed article, or book chapter) or be under consideration for publication elsewhere.
No Simultaneous Submission: Authors must not submit the same manuscript, in the same or different languages, to more than one journal simultaneously or at different times.
Permissions for Content: Authors are solely responsible for determining whether the disclosure of content requires prior consent from other parties and, if so, for obtaining that consent before submission. The journal assumes all necessary permissions have been secured by the author prior to submission and will not request or verify evidence of such permissions.
Data Retention: Authors should maintain access to original research results and preserve primary data for a minimum of five years, or as long as there is a reasonable need to refer to them.
Confidentiality and Privacy: Authors must meticulously maintain the confidentiality and privacy of research participants as required by applicable laws, regulations, standards, or agreed terms of the study.
Ethical Approval for Human/Animal Studies: For studies involving human subjects, vulnerable populations (e.g., children, minors), and/or animals, authors must submit a statement of consent and approval (or grant of exemption) from the concerned institutional review board (IRB) or research ethics committee. Authors must declare that the study was conducted under applicable national/international ethical standards, such as the 1964 Declaration of Helsinki and its later amendments or comparable ethical standards. This declaration and approval are also required for Clinical Studies and Clinical Trials.
Conciseness: Any non-essential details should be removed from the manuscript before submission.
Author Responsibility (Content Accuracy): All authors bear full responsibility, within the limits of their professional competence, for the accuracy and completeness of the facts, procedures, results, and all other content contained in their manuscripts.
Version Deposit Policy: All authors/submitters must adhere to TIRJTS’s Version Deposit Policy for Authors.

Tamilmanam International Research Journal of Tamil Studies (TIRJTS)

4.2 Code of Ethics for Publisher(s), Editor(s), Reviewer(s), Coordinators(s), and other Board Member(s)

The Tamilmanam International Research Journal of Tamil Studies (TIRJTS) is committed to upholding the highest ethical standards in academic publishing. All journal personnel, including publishers, editors, reviewers, coordinators, and board members, are responsible for identifying and preventing research misconduct such as plagiarism, citation manipulation, and data falsification/fabrication. TIRJTS will never encourage or knowingly permit such misconduct. Allegations of misconduct will be addressed promptly according to ICMJE/COPE guidelines (or equivalent applicable standards).

Core Principles:

Integrity: All parties must adhere strictly to journal policies, international publishing standards, and legal obligations, refraining from any form of misconduct.
Confidentiality: The content of all submitted manuscripts must be treated with the utmost confidentiality. Authors must not submit their content to multiple journals simultaneously for publication or consideration. Journal personnel must not make or retain copies of submitted content, and all materials must be returned to the Editor-in-Chief after necessary actions are completed. No party shall use submitted content, or any part thereof, or information contained within it, before its official publication and release.
Impartiality: Decisions regarding manuscript acceptance or rejection will be based solely on the manuscript’s alignment with the journal’s objectives and academic merit, irrespective of the author(s)’ race, gender, religion, region, qualification, position, or other personal characteristics.
Blind Review Process: The journal employs a blind review process that ensures the confidentiality of reviewer identities from authors and author identities from reviewers. Editors, reviewers, coordinators, and all involved parties are obligated to maintain this two-way confidentiality.
- Reviewer Responsibilities: Reviewers should provide comments focused solely on the manuscript’s content and its contribution (positive or negative) to society and the journal’s objectives, rather than on the author(s)’ proficiency. Reviewers must immediately notify the Editor-in-Chief if they identify any connection with the manuscript or its authors (e.g., having previously guided the submitted work) to avoid potential conflicts of interest.
- Conflict of Interest: Editors and coordinators are responsible for implementing proper checks to avoid conflicts of interest between authors and reviewers.
Editorial Authority: The Editor-in-Chief considers reviewer comments as a primary basis for decisions on manuscript inclusion or rejection. However, other factors such as topic criticality and suitability for the journal’s current scope may also influence the final decision. The Editor-in-Chief’s decision on manuscript inclusion is final and binding for all parties.
Operational Independence: Different journal boards must function independently, without influencing each other’s decisions or actions, while collectively contributing to the journal’s overall objectives.
Content Integrity: No party shall forge, misarticulate, alter, or spoil the content of submitted manuscripts.
Flexibility in Process: The Editor-in-Chief may, if deemed absolutely necessary, skip or add steps in the manuscript processing (e.g., omitting a review for secrecy or to avoid conflicts of interest). Such decisions are at the sole discretion of the Editor-in-Chief and are final.

5. Disclaimer

The Tamilmanam International Research Journal of Tamil Studies (TIRJTS) provides the following disclaimers regarding its operations and published content:

Author Responsibility: TIRJTS explicitly disclaims responsibility for any violations of copyright, patent, or other laws or rules by authors in their submitted content, or for any oversights during the review process. Authors bear sole and complete responsibility for the correctness, completeness, and legal compliance of their submitted work.
Website Content & Copyright: All materials on this website are the copyright of Tamilmanam International Research Journal of Tamil Studies (TIRJTS), or are reproduced with permission from other copyright owners, or are submitted by respective authors who either own the content or affirm they have secured permissions for its use and submission. All rights are reserved. Website materials may be retrieved and downloaded solely for personal use. No materials may otherwise be copied, modified, published, broadcast, or distributed without prior written permission from TIRJTS.
No Warranties: TIRJTS makes no warranties or representations of any kind concerning the accuracy, suitability, merchantability, fitness for purpose, title, and/or non-infringement of the information contained on this website. All such information is provided “as is.” TIRJTS also makes no warranties or representations that the services provided by this website will be uninterrupted, error-free, or that the website or its host server are free from viruses or other forms of harmful computer code.
Limitation of Liability: In no event shall TIRJTS, its employees, agents, or representatives be liable for any direct, indirect, or consequential damages resulting from the use of this website or its contents. This exclusion and limitation apply only to the extent permitted by law and are without prejudice to any express provisions to the contrary in any written license or subscription agreement from TIRJTS regarding the use of any online service provided via this website.
Third-Party Content: Portions of this site are prepared from content submitted by other people (users, members, authors, etc.), which do not necessarily reflect the views of TIRJTS. TIRJTS reserves the right, at its sole discretion, to review, edit, or delete any material posted by these other people. By posting materials on this site, these individuals represent that they have all necessary rights to such materials and that such materials will not infringe any personal or proprietary rights of any third parties, nor will they be defamatory, unlawful, threatening, obscene, or otherwise objectionable.

6. Publication Policies and Procedures

6.1 Policy on Editorial Freedom

The Tamilmanam International Research Journal of Tamil Studies (TIRJTS) adheres to a strict policy of editorial freedom, ensuring that the Publisher has no interference in decisions regarding the journal’s quality or the selection of its boards and teams.

The Editorial Chairperson and Editor-in-Chief jointly hold full authority over the planning of each journal issue, including its structuring and scheduling. They are collectively responsible for determining all content types—research, general, sponsored, and supplementary—as well as establishing respective policies, procedures, guidelines, and templates for the Journal.

The editorial workflow for submitted articles is as follows:

The Editor-in-Chief, via a system administrator, assigns an editor to each submitted article.
The assigned editor is responsible for selecting reviewer(s) for the article and makes the final decision on its selection or rejection, based on the reviewers’ advice.
Finally accepted and copy-edited articles are provided to the Editor-in-Chief, who then determines the structure of the overall volume and oversees its publication within the system.

6.2 Publication Schedule Policy

The Tamilmanam International Research Journal of Tamil Studies (TIRJTS) is scheduled for monthly publication.

The first issue of each volume (e.g., Vol. 1, No. 1 YYYY) is released in January, with subsequent issues (No. 2, 3, etc.) following monthly throughout the year.
Each new volume commences in January of the following year (e.g., Vol. 2, No. 1 YYYY).
In addition to regular issues, TIRJTS may publish special issues to address specific research areas or global challenges pertinent to the journal’s scope.

6.3 Open Access Policy Statement

The Tamilmanam International Research Journal of Tamil Studies (TIRJTS) is an open access journal, meaning all published research articles are freely available online to users. Users are permitted to read, download, copy, distribute, print, search, or link to the full texts of these articles, and to use them for any other lawful purpose, as defined under applicable Copyright Policy and Law. This is contingent upon appropriate citation being given to the journal and proper credit attributed to the author(s), in accordance with the Budapest Open Access Initiative (BOAI) definition of open access (https://www.budapestopenaccessinitiative.org/).

6.4 Policy on Copyright, License, and Publishing Rights

Copyright Retention: The publisher respects the rights of authors; copyright for all work published in the Tamilmanam International Research Journal of Tamil Studies (TIRJTS) is retained by the author(s).
First Publication Rights: The “First Publication Rights” (FPR) to the original work accepted for publication in TIRJTS are granted to the Journal’s Publisher.
Licensing: All works published in TIRJTS are distributed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License (CC BY 4.0). This license permits others to distribute, remix, adapt, and build upon your work, even commercially, provided proper credit is given to the original creation. This is the most accommodating license, recommended for maximum dissemination and use of licensed materials.
Reference List Licensing: In accordance with DORA Guidelines (Declaration on Research Assessment), the reference lists published with articles are available under Creative Commons CC0 1.0 Universal (Public Domain Dedication).
Author’s Post-Publication Rights: After publication with TIRJTS, authors retain complete rights over their content for amendments and reuse in any form. TIRJTS explicitly confirms that authors hold the copyright of their content.
Author Permissions: Author(s) grant permission for their work to be:
- Indexed (in part/full form) in commercial and non-commercial indexes.
- Harvested (in part/full form) in commercial and non-commercial archives and distributed through them.
- Translated (in part/full form) into any language and republished/redistributed.
External Agreements & Third-Party Content: Author(s) may enter into separate, additional contractual agreements for the non-exclusive distribution of the published version of their work, provided they acknowledge its initial publication in this Journal. Authors are solely responsible for securing all necessary copyright and/or permissions for the use of third-party content within their manuscript(s). This must be declared at the time of manuscript submission, and written evidence of permission may be required at any time.
Policy Precedence Declaration: Due to technical limitations or other reasons beyond the publisher’s control, some standalone files (including PDF copies of articles) or archived pages/articles may display copyright statements incorrectly attributing copyright to the Journal/Publisher/Other. THIS IS HEREBY DECLARED THAT THIS POLICY PREVAILS OVER ALL OTHER COPYRIGHT STATEMENTS DECLARED ANYWHERE ELSE with respect to the Tamilmanam International Research Journal of Tamil Studies (TIRJTS). This explicitly confirms that all content published with the Tamilmanam International Research Journal of Tamil Studies (TIRJTS) is ‘OPEN ACCESS’ under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License (CC BY 4.0)

6.5 Plagiarism Policy

Tamilmanam International Research Journal of Tamil Studies (TIRJTS) maintains a strict plagiarism policy. Plagiarism in any form—including text, images, data, or any other content—is strictly prohibited and considered an unethical and illegal act.

All submitted articles undergo rigorous plagiarism checks by the Editorial Board. Any content found to be plagiarized will be immediately rejected without proceeding to peer review. Content derived from existing works, when appropriately cited and credited to the original owners, is not considered plagiarism.

Plagiarism Detection & Reporting: Plagiarism detection is carried out using standard tools. Reports detailing the date of the check and the extent of duplication will be included in the PDF versions of all published articles.

Acceptable Duplication Limits (with proper citations):

10% for General Research Articles
20% for Research Review Articles
30% for Literature Review Articles

The Editor-in-Chief may grant a concession of up to 5% beyond these limits, with appropriate remarks clearly displayed on the published article’s PDF version.

Author Declaration & Journal’s Process: TIRJTS does not require authors or submitters to provide a separate certificate or signed declaration attesting to plagiarism-free content. Instead, authors/submitters acknowledge their responsibility regarding content originality within the submission checklist in the Journal Management System. The Editorial Board solely relies on its internal plagiarism checks and reports, conducted according to this policy, for making acceptance decisions.

Simultaneous Submission Policy: To ensure integrity and avoid discrepancies in plagiarism reports, authors/submitters are strictly prohibited from submitting the same article or content to multiple journals or platforms simultaneously. Any such submission discovered during the review or editorial process will result in immediate rejection by the Journal’s Editorial Board without further consideration.

6.6 Peer Review Policy

Tamilmanam International Research Journal of Tamil Studies (TIRJTS) employs a Double-Blind Peer Review Process for all submissions, including those for regular editions, special issues, and conference proceedings.

Important Disclaimer: TIRJTS does not guarantee manuscript acceptance or expedited peer review timelines. Any claims made on behalf of TIRJTS promising such outcomes are invalid.

Tamilmanam International Research Journal of Tamil Studies (TIRJTS) Peer Review Policy

7. Pre-Publication Peer Review Process

Initial Assessment: All submissions to TIRJTS, regardless of category, undergo an initial review by the Editor(s) and/or Associate Editor(s). Manuscripts may be rejected at this stage without peer review if they are deemed insufficient in priority, irrelevant to the journal’s scope, or fail to meet TIRJTS submission standards.
External Review & Double-Blind Policy: Manuscripts that pass the initial assessment are sent for independent peer review. Multiple reviewers may be assigned, particularly for interdisciplinary or multidisciplinary research. As a not-for-profit initiative, TIRJTS relies on external, independent reviewers, who may or may not hold membership in the Journal’s parent/partner organizations. To ensure a rigorous double-blind review process, the identities of authors and their affiliations are concealed from reviewers, and vice versa.
Decision & Outcomes: A decision on the manuscript is made based on feedback from the assigned reviewer(s) and the Editor’s judgment. Manuscripts may also be sent for additional statistical, legal, or other specialized reviews if necessary. Review feedback, received via email or other reliable systems, is advisory. The Editorial Board’s final decision regarding a manuscript’s inclusion or rejection in a volume is absolute.

7.1 Possible Review Outcomes

Accepted: The manuscript is recommended for immediate publication in an appropriate volume/issue of TIRJTS.
Revisions Required: The manuscript requires specific revisions (e.g., data, grammar, formatting) before it can be accepted for publication. This decision is accompanied by detailed comments outlining the necessary changes.
Resubmit for Review: The manuscript requires significant revisions and will undergo a second round of peer review upon resubmission.
Resubmit Elsewhere: Although the research may have potential, it does not align with TIRJTS’s policies or scope for immediate inclusion. Reviewers may suggest resubmitting to a more suitable journal, possibly another journal within NGM College, and may recommend a specific title.
Declined: The manuscript is rejected for publication in any volume/issue of TIRJTS. Reviewers are not obligated to provide an explanation for this decision.
See Comments: This option is selected when none of the standard outcomes fully apply, and specific comments are provided to guide further action.

7.2 Dispute Resolution

In instances of conflict between multiple reviewers, or between a reviewer’s decision and an editor’s decision, or with the author, the editor’s decision typically prevails. However, if the dispute significantly impacts the vision or quality of TIRJTS, any party can escalate the matter as per the Journal’s Misconducts Handling Procedure.

7.3 Post-Publication Peer Review

Peer review extends beyond pre-publication. TIRJTS encourages ongoing post-publication review by readers of published articles, allowing for continued assessment of quality, applicability, and other parameters. While comments are recommended on ResearchGate, readers may also utilize other platforms such as PubPeer for their review comments.

7.4 Data Integrity & Reproducibility

Reviewers are primarily responsible for identifying and flagging any suspicious data within a submission and may put the submission on hold until doubts are resolved. Authors are solely responsible for the content and outcomes presented in their submissions. While TIRJTS is fully indemnified against any issues related to the correctness or incorrectness of content, the editorial/reviewer board may require authors to provide proof of data authenticity and the reproducibility of research outcomes. TIRJTS adheres to the COPE (Committee on Publication Ethics) suggested workflow for Data and Reproducibility to ensure the veracity and reliability of research data and its outcomes. (COPE Council. COPE Flowcharts and infographics — Fabricated data in a submitted manuscript — English. https://doi.org/10.24318/cope.2019.2.3 ©2021 Committee on Publication Ethics)

7.5 Conflict of Interest Policy

The publication process involves various responsibilities—including reviews, recommendations, copy editing, scheduling, and publishing—carried out by multiple individuals. Recognizing that human involvement can lead to “Conflicts of Interest,” TIRJTS is committed to ensuring the integrity and honesty of these processes. To mitigate the impact of conflicts of interest on the quality of the Journal’s outcomes, TIRJTS employs the following policies: (The original text ends here, implying further policy details would follow).

8. Pre-Publication Peer Review Process

Initial Assessment: All submissions to TIRJTS, regardless of category, undergo an initial review by the Editor(s) and/or Associate Editor(s). Manuscripts may be rejected at this stage without peer review if they are deemed insufficient in priority, irrelevant to the journal’s scope, or fail to meet TIRJTS submission standards.
External Review & Double-Blind Policy: Manuscripts that pass the initial assessment are sent for independent peer review. Multiple reviewers may be assigned, particularly for interdisciplinary or multidisciplinary research. As a not-for-profit initiative, TIRJTS relies on external, independent reviewers, who may or may not hold membership in the Journal’s parent/partner organizations. To ensure a rigorous double-blind review process, the identities of authors and their affiliations are concealed from reviewers, and vice versa.
Decision & Outcomes: A decision on the manuscript is made based on feedback from the assigned reviewer(s) and the Editor’s judgment. Manuscripts may also be sent for additional statistical, legal, or other specialized reviews if necessary. Review feedback, received via email or other reliable systems, is advisory. The Editorial Board’s final decision regarding a manuscript’s inclusion or rejection in a volume is absolute.

8.1 Possible Review Outcomes

Accepted: The manuscript is recommended for immediate publication in an appropriate volume/issue of TIRJTS.
Revisions Required: The manuscript requires specific revisions (e.g., data, grammar, formatting) before it can be accepted for publication. This decision is accompanied by detailed comments outlining the necessary changes.
Resubmit for Review: The manuscript requires significant revisions and will undergo a second round of peer review upon resubmission.
Resubmit Elsewhere: Although the research may have potential, it does not align with TIRJTS’s policies or scope for immediate inclusion. Reviewers may suggest resubmitting to a more suitable journal, possibly another journal within NGM College, and may recommend a specific title.
Declined: The manuscript is rejected for publication in any volume/issue of TIRJTS. Reviewers are not obligated to provide an explanation for this decision.
See Comments: This option is selected when none of the standard outcomes fully apply, and specific comments are provided to guide further action.

8.2 Dispute Resolution

8.3 Post-Publication Peer Review

8.4 Data Integrity & Reproducibility

8.5 Conflict of Interest Policy

8.6 Self-Archiving Policy

In line with the principles of GREEN OPEN ACCESS PUBLICATION, Tamilmanam International Research Journal of Tamil Studies (TIRJTS) allows its authors to self-archive the submitted version of the article, the accepted (peer-reviewed) version of the article, and the Copyedited Galley (Published) version of the article at any time after its release.

9. Journal Archiving Procedure

TIRJTS will self-archive its volumes in their original form every 10 years on a separate online server/URL using standard server backup tools. The archived volumes will be accessible online or upon request. Print versions of any volume will be available upon demand after payment of the appropriate fees and charges.

In addition to self-archiving, TIRJTS submits its content in appropriate formats/protocols to different independent third-party archivers, including PKP Private LOCKSS Network (PKP-PN), OCLC WorldCat Digital Collection Gateway, Internet Archive, and others. Access to the journal content has been ensured even if the journal is no longer published or available on its official website.

Accessibility to the third-party archives is governed by their own respective policies and procedures. Details about these archives and their respective links (where available) will be provided on the official website of TIRJTS (https://tamilmanam.in/indxing/).

Version Deposit Policy for Authors

Authors may wish to deposit a copy of their research article in an institutional or other repository of their choice. TIRJTS freely allows all versions (Submitted/Accepted/Published) to be deposited in an institutional or other repository of the author’s choice without embargo. Whenever possible, the author(s) should provide a reference to the TIRJTS as the original publishing site of the article.

Persistent Identifier Policy

TIRJTS assigns unique and persistent identifiers to each of its issues and articles published electronically using Digital Object Identifier (DOI) or Archival Resource Key (ARK) Name Assigning Authority Numbers (NAANs) or other equivalent services.

The assigned and registered persistent identifiers will be displayed on the respective published pages on the official website of NGM College Library Journal Management System.

Crossmark Policy

Crossmark is a multi-publisher initiative of CrossRef that provides a standard way to confirm the latest updated version of a published article to the readers of a journal. The prerequisite is to have a DOI along with a Crossmark Policy of the journal.

Applying Crossmark to every article and submitting its respective metadata to Crossref is a policy of TIRJTS, and through this, the journal is committed to providing the latest versions of published articles to its readers, along with authentic information about version history and changes (if any) in any article published in any issue of the journal.

The changes in any article(s) are implemented through the ‘Correction and Version Control Procedure’ of the Journal.

Tamilmanam International Research Journal of Tamil Studies (TIRJTS)

10. Policy on Publishing Ethics, Corrections, Retractions, and Appeals

Tamilmanam International Research Journal of Tamil Studies (TIRJTS) is committed to upholding the highest standards of publishing ethics and integrity. This policy outlines our procedures for managing corrections, retractions, and allegations of research misconduct, ensuring transparency and accountability.

Corrections and Version Control

Minor Errors: For minor or essential corrections that do not significantly alter the research results, conclusions, or overall structure of a published article, TIRJTS follows its ‘Correction and Version Control Procedure’.
Major Errors and Replacement: Major errors or modifications may necessitate the retraction or, in rare cases, replacement of an article. Article replacement at TIRJTS is strictly limited to honest errors (e.g., misclassification, miscalculation, or other human errors). Such cases require a thorough review by a panel constituted and led by the Editorial Chairperson/Editor-in-Chief. Approved articles will be republished following the ‘Correction and Version Control Procedure’, and a supplementary review report detailing the Editor-in-Chief’s unambiguous decision will be published alongside the article, accessible to authors and readers.

Research Misconduct Prevention and Handling

Commitment to Integrity: TIRJTS, as part of the IARS International Research Journal network, takes all reasonable steps to identify and prevent the publication of papers where research misconduct has occurred. This includes, but is not limited to, data fabrication or falsification, manipulation of details, intentional hiding of relationships (conflicts of interest), inappropriate credit assignment, and plagiarism.
Non-Tolerance: TIRJTS and its editors will not encourage or knowingly allow any such misconduct to take place.
Reporting Misconduct: All authors, reviewers, readers, and stakeholders are encouraged to notify the Editor-in-Chief about any suspected misconduct. Allegations concerning a published article should be reported in writing (print/e-mail) to the Editor-in-Chief at editor@tamilmanam.in. Allegations against the Editor-in-Chief should be reported to the Governing Board of the International Association of Research Scholars (IARS) at ngmcollegelibrary@gmail.com.
Investigation Procedure:
- All reported appeals or claims of misconduct will be investigated by a team delegated and led by the Editor-in-Chief. Claims against the Editor-in-Chief will be investigated by a team constituted by the IARS Governing Board.
- Investigations adhere to COPE’s guidelines (or equivalent) and are based on the expected ethical behavior of all parties involved.
- Confidentiality regarding the reporting individual or group is a strict policy of the journal.
Outcomes of Misconduct: If a misconduct claim is substantiated by the investigation team’s report, the Editor-in-Chief will determine the appropriate course of action. This may include, but is not limited to:
- Removal or retraction of the disputed content from the journal.
- Temporary or permanent prohibition of the author(s) or involved individuals from publishing in the journal.
- Publishing an announcement expressing concern about the validity of previously published work(s) by the author(s).
- The journal reserves the right to question the validity of other works by the author(s) published within the IARS network if a fraudulent paper is discovered. The Editorial Board may request assurance regarding the validity of these other works or may retract them if not satisfied.

General Policies and Disclaimers

No Liability for Misconduct: The journal is not liable for any loss (monetary, emotional, physical, or any other kind) resulting from the unethical behavior of authors. In no case will the journal or its management be liable to pay any refund or monetary penalties due to the unethical behavior of its authors or other individuals.
Honorary Roles: All positions within the journal’s teams and boards are honorary. Individuals volunteer their services to support global research. The journal’s owners, publishers, and team members do not assume direct employment responsibility for these volunteers, but mutually encourage adherence to ethical work practices.
Final Decision: The decision of the Editor-in-Chief regarding any ethical dispute or misconduct case, reached through an ethically acceptable investigation, is considered final for all parties.

Tamilmanam International Research Journal of Tamil Studies (TIRJTS) Correction and Version Control Procedure

In the event that minor or pervasive errors or essential corrections/modifications (not affecting the research results, conclusions, or overall structure of the published article) are reported to or self-detected by Tamilmanam International Research Journal of Tamil Studies (TIRJTS), the following procedure is followed:

A ‘correction notice’ is published on https://tamilmanam.in/versions.
The old manuscript of the published article is archived for future reference. The archived version is made accessible upon request.
A new copyedit of the article is created with the ‘correction notice’ and version details.
Required changes are made to the details provided on the official website of the journal.
Previous versions of the article are notified about the availability of the new version through systems like CROSSMARK/Equivalent or through a respective note/link on the website. An auto-redirection of the link or other equivalent methods may also be used to serve the latest copy of the publication to its readers.
Citations are updated in the systems according to the changes.

Retraction and Version Control Procedure

The procedure of reporting concerns/misconduct, respective reviews/evaluations, and decision and retraction shall be conducted as per COPE’s (or equivalent) guidelines.

In case such guidelines lead Tamilmanam International Research Journal of Tamil Studies (TIRJTS) to decide on the retraction of an article, all retractions shall be reported on https://tamilmanam.in/versions with appropriate comments/reasons.
Concerns regarding the validity of other works of the author(s) of retracted articles shall be ascertained through separate communications and review/evaluation by a panel constituted by the Editorial Chairperson/Editor-in-Chief. As per the panel’s satisfaction, the other work(s) shall be retained or retracted as per this procedure or respective concerns may be announced in the journal or its associated public domain.

11. Finance Policy of Journal

Source of Funds

Tamilmanam International Research Journal of Tamil Studies (TIRJTS) is a volunteer-driven initiative supporting Global Research Publishing and relies on ARTICLE PROCESSING CHARGES (APC) from authors for processing and publishing their research articles. This contributes to the major sources of funds for the journal’s survival, further supported by donations from sponsoring organizations. The journal has no source of income from Mariammal Educational Trust, as both are not-for-profit projects.

Third-Party Advertisements on Tamilmanam International Research Journal of Tamil Studies (TIRJTS) are prohibited.

Any financial support offered under the condition of influencing publishing standards, procedures, decisions of reviewers/editors, or any quality parameter of the journal is considered misconduct and handled as per the “Misconducts Handling Procedure” of the journal.

Severe actions and penalties can be imposed on the culprit, including but not limited to debarring them from publishing with the journal or holding their membership or any position in any board of the journal.

Processing Charges Policy

Tamilmanam International Research Journal of Tamil Studies (TIRJTS) has a clear aim of providing a Quality Platform for researchers to share their research and benefit from the knowledge of other researchers’ research. The journal follows a ZERO COST POLICY for subscribers, although ARTICLE PROCESSING CHARGES are imposed on the author/submitter.

Tamilmanam International Research Journal of Tamil Studies (TIRJTS) DOES NOT CHARGE ANY OTHER FEE for article indexing/distributing/accessing. The access to all research articles published in electronic form is FREE of COST on its website and is 100% Green Open Access.

Tamilmanam International Research Journal of Tamil Studies (TIRJTS) charges ZERO Electronic-Subscription Fee, although Print copies of the journal are sold at a price set by the Governing and Editorial Board of the journal. A nominal margin can be kept in the selling price of Print Copies of the Journal to meet the journal’s survival expenses.

DOI charges: Authors of the Research Paper are charged Rs500 (INR) if they wish to assign a Crossref DOI number and receive a soft copy of the certificate. This is not compulsory.

Compensation Policy

The Tamilmanam International Research Journal of Tamil Studies (TIRJTS) operates as a completely volunteer-driven initiative to support global research publishing, maintaining a “zero paid staff” policy. The Journal relies entirely on the voluntary efforts of experts in interdisciplinary subjects from various renowned universities, research organizations, industry, and academia. No salary is paid to members of the editorial board, advisory board, reviewer board, or the administration team. However, pre-approved, documented “out-of-pocket” expenses incurred while performing services for the Journal may be reimbursed upon approval from the Editorial Chairperson. Certain article-processing services, such as formatting and file processing, are handled by external contractual data-processing personnel, compensated according to their specific contractual terms.

Direct Marketing Policy

TIRJTS relies solely on the quality and impact of its published research content for its publicity and growth. The Journal does not engage in direct advertising through print or electronic media.

12. Editorial and Publishing Practices

Implementation of DORA (Declaration on Research Assessment) Recommendations:

In adherence to DORA, TIRJTS does not use the Journal Impact Factor as a promotional tool.
All published articles feature publicly accessible Article Level Metrics (ALMs), including citations, downloads, and readership data, displayed on their individual webpages.
Responsible authorship is promoted through a comprehensive Code of Conduct and Guidelines for Authors.
TIRJTS adheres to 100% Green Open Access principles. Reference lists for published articles are made available under Creative Commons CC0 1.0 Universal (Public Domain Dedication). Copyrights are governed by the Journal’s specific Copyright & License Policy.
The Journal imposes no constraints on the number of references in research articles.
Authors are encouraged to cite primary literature over review articles to appropriately credit original findings.

ISSN : 3049-0723 (Online)

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