12  Application of ICT in research

12.1 What the Syllabus Covers

Information and Communication Technology (ICT) supports every step of the research process. The candidate must recognise (a) the categories of ICT use across the research lifecycle, (b) Government-of-India platforms for research and scholarly communication, (c) common software for analysis, writing and reference management, and (d) the AI tools now entering the workflow.

Most-repeated PYQ patterns: matching platform → coordinator, matching abbreviation → full form, and identifying the research step at which a given tool is used.

12.2 ICT Across the Research Lifecycle

TipICT Across the 9 Research Steps
Research step ICT support
Identify problem Search engines, databases, citation alerts
Review literature Online databases, reference managers, AI summarisers
Design Sample-size calculators, randomisers, study-design tools
Sampling Online frame databases, random-number generators
Data collection Online survey platforms, mobile apps, CAPI/CATI
Data analysis SPSS, R, Python, NVivo, ATLAS.ti
Interpretation Visualisation, dashboards, GenAI explainers
Reporting Word, LaTeX, Quarto, Overleaf, reference managers
Publication & sharing OJS, preprint servers, ORCID, social media, Altmetrics 

flowchart TB
  P[Problem &<br/>Literature] --> D[Design &<br/>Sampling]
  D --> C[Data<br/>Collection]
  C --> A[Analysis &<br/>Visualisation]
  A --> W[Writing &<br/>Reporting]
  W --> S[Sharing,<br/>Publication & Impact]
  S -.-> P
    classDef default fill:#003366,color:#ffffff,stroke:#ffcc00,stroke-width:3px,rx:10px,ry:10px;

12.4 Online Databases and Repositories

12.4.1 Indian Government Platforms

TipIndian Research Platforms — Comprehensive Reference
Platform What it is Coordinator
INFLIBNET Information & Library Network Centre — umbrella body UGC, Gandhinagar
Shodhganga National repository of PhD theses INFLIBNET
Shodhgangotri Synopses of approved doctoral topics INFLIBNET
e-ShodhSindhu Consortium for e-resources (journals/databases) INFLIBNET
VIDWAN Database of experts (researchers, academics) INFLIBNET
e-PG Pathshala Postgraduate e-content UGC + INFLIBNET
e-Adhyayan E-books for PG UGC
NDLI National Digital Library of India IIT Kharagpur, MoE
SWAYAM National MOOC platform MoE + AICTE
SWAYAM Prabha 32+ DTH educational TV channels INFLIBNET
NPTEL Engineering/science MOOCs IITs + IISc
N-LIST National Library & Information Services Infrastructure for Scholarly Content (e-resources for colleges) INFLIBNET
CSIR e-journals consortium E-journals for CSIR labs NISCAIR/CSIR
DELNET Developing Library Network NIC
AISHE All India Survey on Higher Education MoE
NIRF National Institutional Ranking Framework MoE
PRABANDH Project monitoring portal DST
e-Yantra Robotics education project IIT Bombay
NMEICT National Mission on Education through ICT MoE

12.4.2 Global Open-Access Infrastructure

TipOpen-Access Infrastructure
  • DOAJ — Directory of Open Access Journals (quality-vetted).
  • OpenDOAR — Directory of Open Access Repositories.
  • ROAR — Registry of Open Access Repositories.
  • SHERPA/RoMEO — publishers’ self-archiving policies.
  • Plan S / cOAlition S — funder mandate for open access (2018).
  • arXiv, bioRxiv, medRxiv, PsyArXiv, SSRN, RePEc — preprint servers.
  • Zenodo · Figshare · Dryad · OSF — data and supplementary-material repositories.
  • Creative Commons (CC) — 6 licences (BY, BY-SA, BY-NC, BY-ND, BY-NC-SA, BY-NC-ND).

12.5 Reference Management

TipReference Managers
Tool Note
Zotero Free, open-source, browser plug-in; FOSS favourite
Mendeley Free desktop + cloud; Elsevier-owned
EndNote Paid; deep Word integration; Clarivate
RefWorks Institutional cloud; Clarivate
JabRef Open-source, BibTeX-native
Citavi Long-form thesis workflow
Paperpile Cloud-native, Google Docs integration
BibDesk macOS BibTeX manager

12.6 Data Collection — Online Survey Platforms

TipOnline Data-Collection Tools
  • Google Forms — free, fast, basic.
  • Microsoft Forms — bundled with Office 365.
  • SurveyMonkey — large free / paid tiers.
  • Qualtrics — premium, sophisticated branching and logic.
  • LimeSurvey — open-source, self-hosted.
  • KoBoToolbox — open-source, mobile/offline, used widely by NGOs and field researchers.
  • ODK (Open Data Kit) — open-source field data collection on Android.
  • CommCare · CSPro · ONA — field-data platforms.
  • REDCap — research-grade, clinical-trial friendly.
TipComputer-Assisted Modes (Acronyms to Remember)
  • CAPI — Computer-Assisted Personal Interviewing.
  • CATI — Computer-Assisted Telephone Interviewing.
  • CAWI — Computer-Assisted Web Interviewing.
  • CASI — Computer-Assisted Self-Interviewing.

12.7 Data Analysis Software

12.7.1 Quantitative

TipQuantitative-Analysis Software
Tool Note
SPSS Most-used in Indian theses; click-button + syntax
R Open-source; gold standard for statistics & visualisation
Python scikit-learn, statsmodels, pandas — broad data-science use
SAS Enterprise; pharmaceutical industry
Stata Econometrics, social-science research
JASP & jamovi Open-source SPSS-like front-ends to R
MATLAB Engineering, signal processing
Minitab Quality engineering, education
Excel Universal; limited for serious analysis

12.7.2 Qualitative

TipQualitative-Analysis Software
Tool Note
NVivo Most-used; QSR International
ATLAS.ti German origin; popular for academic projects
MAXQDA Strong mixed-methods; VERBI Software
Dedoose Web-based mixed-methods
QDA Miner Provalis Research
Quirkos Visual-cluster qualitative analysis
HyperRESEARCH · Transana · Reframer · Taguette · OpenCode Other tools

12.8 Writing, Typesetting and Collaboration

TipWriting Tools
  • Microsoft Word, Google Docs, LibreOffice Writer, WPS — general word processing.
  • LaTeX (TeX Live, MikTeX) — typesetting for STEM theses and papers.
  • Overleaf — collaborative cloud LaTeX editor.
  • Quarto, R Markdown, Jupyter — reproducible writing with embedded code.
  • Scrivener — long-form structured writing.
  • Notion · Obsidian · Roam Research — knowledge management and writing.
  • Grammarly · ProWritingAid · LanguageTool · Hemingway — language polish.
  • DeepL · Google Translate — translation aid.

12.9 Visualisation and Dashboards

TipVisualisation Tools
  • Excel, Google Sheets — basic charts.
  • Tableau, Power BI, Qlik — interactive dashboards.
  • R: ggplot2, plotly, Shiny — programmatic visualisation.
  • Python: matplotlib, seaborn, plotly, bokeh, dash — data-science visuals.
  • D3.js, Highcharts — web-based visualisation.
  • GIS: QGIS, ArcGIS, Bhuvan (ISRO) — geo-spatial.
  • Mind & concept maps: XMind, MindMeister, CmapTools, Lucidchart.

12.10 Cloud, Storage and Collaboration

TipStorage and Collaboration
  • Google Drive, OneDrive, iCloud, Dropbox, Box — cloud storage.
  • GitHub, GitLab, Bitbucket — version control + collaboration.
  • Slack, MS Teams, Mattermost — team chat.
  • Zoom, Google Meet, Cisco Webex, Jitsi — video conferencing.
  • Mural · Miro — collaborative whiteboards.
  • OSF (Open Science Framework) — research-project management + preregistration.

12.11 Plagiarism, Integrity and AI Detection

TipPlagiarism and Integrity Tools
  • Turnitin · iThenticate · Drillbit — plagiarism check (Drillbit is UGC-empanelled in India).
  • PlagScan · Plagiarisma · Quetext · DupliChecker — other checkers.
  • Crossref Similarity Check — publisher-side tool.
  • AI-detection: GPTZero · Turnitin AI Detector · Originality.ai · Copyleaks · ZeroGPT.
  • AI-paraphrase / smoothing: QuillBot · Wordtune · Spinbot (risk: unintentional plagiarism).
  • ORCID iD · Publons · ResearchGate · Academia.edu · Google Scholar Profile — researcher identity & networking.

12.12 Artificial Intelligence in Research — The New Layer

12.12.1 What GenAI Now Does in Research

TipGenAI in the Research Workflow
  • Literature search & summarisation — Elicit, Consensus, Scite, Research Rabbit, Connected Papers, SciSpace, Iris.ai, Perplexity.
  • Drafting and editing — ChatGPT, Claude, Gemini, Copilot.
  • Coding for analysis — GitHub Copilot, Cursor, Replit Ghostwriter.
  • Data extraction from PDFs / images — Humata, ChatPDF.
  • Transcription — Otter.ai, Descript, Whisper.
  • Image generation — DALL·E, Midjourney, Stable Diffusion (for figures/illustrations; declare usage).
  • AI peer-review assistance — Scite Assistant, Scholarcy (use cautiously — confidentiality).

12.12.2 Disclosure and Ethics

Most major journals (Nature, Science, Elsevier, Springer Nature, BMJ, JAMA) now require disclosure of GenAI use. Authorship credit cannot be assigned to an AI tool — only humans can take responsibility for accuracy and integrity. UGC, NEP-2020 and AICTE have begun framing AI-use guidelines.

12.13 Online Teaching, MOOC and Conferences

TipOnline Learning and Conference Platforms
  • SWAYAM, NPTEL, e-PG Pathshala, NDLI — Indian MOOC stack.
  • Coursera, edX, FutureLearn, Udacity, Khan Academy — global MOOC.
  • Moodle, Sakai, Blackboard, Canvas, Google Classroom, MS Teams for Edu — LMS.
  • Zoom · Google Meet · MS Teams · Webex · GoTo · Jitsi — webinar / synchronous teaching.
  • Conference platforms — Whova, Hopin, Airmeet (Indian), Hubilo (Indian).
  • Poster presentation — F1000 Posters, ePoster.online.

12.14 Big Data, Cloud Compute and HPC for Research

TipCompute Infrastructure
  • Cloud platforms — AWS · Azure · Google Cloud · Oracle.
  • Indian compute — PARAM Siddhi-AI (C-DAC), PARAM Anant, Garuda Grid, NSM (National Supercomputing Mission), NKN (National Knowledge Network).
  • Containers & reproducibility — Docker, Singularity, Apptainer.
  • Workflow tools — Snakemake, Nextflow, Airflow.
  • Big data — Hadoop, Spark, Kafka.
  • AI / ML platforms — TensorFlow, PyTorch, JAX, scikit-learn, Hugging Face.
  • GPU runtime — Colab, Kaggle, Lightning AI, Vast.ai.

12.15 Indian Research-Funding and Governance Portals

TipResearch-Funding & Governance Portals
  • DST (Department of Science and Technology) — flagship: SERB (Science and Engineering Research Board).
  • DBT (Department of Biotechnology) — life sciences.
  • CSIR (Council of Scientific and Industrial Research) — 38 labs.
  • ICMR (Indian Council of Medical Research) — health.
  • ICSSR (Indian Council of Social Science Research) — social sciences.
  • ICAR (Indian Council of Agricultural Research) — agriculture.
  • UGC research grants and JRF/SRF schemes.
  • PMRF (Prime Minister’s Research Fellowship) — top-tier PhD.
  • PRABANDH portal (DST), e-PROMIS, INSPIRE, PRISM, AURA, NMHS — DST grant portals.
  • ANRF (Anusandhan National Research Foundation) — Act 2023; replacing SERB at apex for funding all disciplines.

12.16 ICT-Driven Risks and Cautions

TipRisks to Watch For
  • Predatory journals — Beall’s list (legacy) + Cabells Predatory Reports.
  • Paper mills — fake or ghost-written papers.
  • Citation rings / coercive citation — manipulating impact metrics.
  • Data fabrication / falsification — fraud.
  • Confidentiality risks — uploading sensitive data to public AI tools.
  • AI hallucination — fabricated citations or facts.
  • Hijacked journals — fake clones of legitimate journals.
  • Image manipulation — Photoshopping figures; tools like ImageTwin and Proofig detect.

12.17 Theory Anchors and Bodies at a Glance

TipICT-in-Research — Key Bodies and Acronyms
Body / Tool What it does
INFLIBNET UGC’s library-network centre (Shodhganga, e-ShodhSindhu, VIDWAN, N-LIST, SWAYAM Prabha)
NIC National Informatics Centre — government IT backbone
MeitY Ministry of Electronics and IT — ICT policy
C-DAC Centre for Development of Advanced Computing — PARAM supercomputers
CSIR-NIScPR (formerly NISCAIR + NISTADS) India’s S&T indexing & policy body
NKN National Knowledge Network — 10 Gbps research backbone
NMEICT National Mission on Education through ICT
NPTEL IIT/IISc engineering MOOCs
AISHE Annual higher-ed survey
NIRF National Institutional Ranking Framework
ABC (UGC) Academic Bank of Credits — credit storage
NAD National Academic Depository — digital credentials
DigiLocker Cloud-locker for government-issued docs

12.18 Practice Questions

Q 01 Repository Easy

India's national repository of PhD theses is called:

  • AShodhganga
  • Be-PG Pathshala
  • CSWAYAM
  • DVIDWAN
View solution
Correct Option: A
Shodhganga (INFLIBNET, 2011) — the national theses repository.
Q 02 Repository Medium

Match the platform with its content:

(i) Shodhgangotri (a) Expert / academic database
(ii) VIDWAN (b) Approved doctoral synopses
(iii) e-ShodhSindhu (c) Consortium of e-journals
(iv) N-LIST (d) E-resources for colleges
  • A(i)-b, (ii)-a, (iii)-c, (iv)-d
  • B(i)-a, (ii)-b, (iii)-d, (iv)-c
  • C(i)-d, (ii)-c, (iii)-b, (iv)-a
  • D(i)-c, (ii)-d, (iii)-a, (iv)-b
View solution
Correct Option: A
All four are INFLIBNET initiatives. Shodhgangotri = synopses; VIDWAN = experts; e-ShodhSindhu = journals; N-LIST = colleges' e-resources.
Q 03 Coordinator Medium

INFLIBNET, the central coordinating body for Indian academic information networks, is headquartered at:

  • ANew Delhi
  • BGandhinagar
  • CBengaluru
  • DPune
View solution
Correct Option: B
INFLIBNET (UGC's Information and Library Network Centre) is located in Gandhinagar, Gujarat.
Q 04 Boolean Easy

The Boolean operator that NARROWS a search by requiring BOTH terms to appear is:

  • AOR
  • BAND
  • CNOT
  • DNEAR
View solution
Correct Option: B
AND narrows (both must appear); OR broadens; NOT excludes.
Q 05 Database Medium

Which is the LEADING bibliographic database for biomedical literature?

  • AERIC
  • BJSTOR
  • CPubMed
  • DarXiv
View solution
Correct Option: C
PubMed (NLM/NIH). ERIC = education; JSTOR = humanities; arXiv = physics/CS preprints.
Q 06 Reference Manager Easy

Which of the following is a FREE / OPEN-SOURCE reference manager?

  • AEndNote
  • BRefWorks
  • CZotero
  • DCitavi
View solution
Correct Option: C
Zotero is open-source. EndNote and RefWorks are commercial. Citavi is paid.
Q 07 CAPI/CATI Medium

CAPI in survey research stands for:

  • ACognitive-Affective-Psychomotor Interview
  • BComputer-Assisted Personal Interviewing
  • CCloud-API Polling Interface
  • DContinuous Audit of Personal Interactions
View solution
Correct Option: B
CAPI = Computer-Assisted Personal Interviewing. Also CATI (telephone), CAWI (web), CASI (self).
Q 08 Software Medium

Which of the following is primarily a QUALITATIVE-data analysis tool?

  • ASPSS
  • BNVivo
  • CStata
  • DMinitab
View solution
Correct Option: B
NVivo (QSR International). Others are quantitative.
Q 09 DOAJ Medium

DOAJ stands for:

  • ADigital Online Academic Journals
  • BDirectory of Open Access Journals
  • CData on Author Journal Articles
  • DDatabase of Approved Journals
View solution
Correct Option: B
DOAJ = Directory of Open Access Journals — quality-vetted OA journal directory.
Q 10 Plagiarism Easy

The UGC-empanelled plagiarism-detection tool widely used by Indian HEIs is:

  • ADrillbit
  • BGPTZero
  • CQuillBot
  • DGrammarly
View solution
Correct Option: A
Drillbit — UGC-empanelled and licensed across many Indian universities. Turnitin and iThenticate are the global standards.
Q 11 Supercomputer Hard

India's flagship supercomputer series, developed by C-DAC, is called:

  • ASAHASRA
  • BPARAM
  • CGANESH
  • DVIKRAM
View solution
Correct Option: B
PARAM series — by C-DAC (Centre for Development of Advanced Computing). PARAM 8000 (1991) was India's first. Latest: PARAM Siddhi-AI, PARAM Ananta. Driven by NSM.
Q 12 NKN Hard

The National Knowledge Network (NKN), a high-speed research network linking Indian HEIs and research labs, is operated by:

  • AUGC
  • BNational Informatics Centre (NIC)
  • CINFLIBNET
  • DCSIR
View solution
Correct Option: B
NKN — a multi-gigabit (up to 10 Gbps) research backbone, run by NIC under MeitY.
Q 13 Preprint Medium

Which is the LEADING preprint server for physics, mathematics and computer science?

  • AbioRxiv
  • BarXiv
  • CSSRN
  • DPsyArXiv
View solution
Correct Option: B
arXiv (Cornell, 1991). bioRxiv = biology; SSRN = social science; PsyArXiv = psychology.
Q 14 GenAI Medium

According to recent guidance from major journals (Nature, Science, Elsevier), when a researcher uses ChatGPT or a similar GenAI tool to draft text, the researcher should:

  • ACredit ChatGPT as a co-author
  • BDisclose the use; AI cannot be a co-author
  • CHide the use to avoid penalties
  • DAdd the AI's API key to the references
View solution
Correct Option: B
Major journals require disclosure of GenAI use. Authorship cannot be assigned to AI — only humans can take responsibility.
Q 15 Open Access Hard

"Plan S" is best described as:

  • AA funder-led open-access mandate (cOAlition S, 2018)
  • BA patent-protection scheme
  • CAn AI-detection consortium
  • DA peer-review certification
View solution
Correct Option: A
Plan S (cOAlition S, 2018) requires research funded by participating funders to be published in compliant open-access venues.
Q 16 ANRF Hard

The Anusandhan National Research Foundation (ANRF), established in 2023, primarily REPLACES which earlier Indian funding body at the apex?

  • AICSSR
  • BSERB
  • CICAR
  • DICMR
View solution
Correct Option: B
ANRF Act 2023 supersedes SERB (Science and Engineering Research Board) as the apex body for funding research across all disciplines.
Q 17 Step Mapping Medium

Match each tool with the research step where it is MOST useful:

(i) Zotero (a) Data collection
(ii) KoBoToolbox (b) Reference management
(iii) R / Python (c) Reporting
(iv) Overleaf (d) Data analysis
  • A(i)-b, (ii)-a, (iii)-d, (iv)-c
  • B(i)-a, (ii)-b, (iii)-c, (iv)-d
  • C(i)-d, (ii)-c, (iii)-b, (iv)-a
  • D(i)-c, (ii)-d, (iii)-a, (iv)-b
View solution
Correct Option: A
Zotero → reference management; KoBoToolbox → field data collection; R/Python → data analysis; Overleaf → reporting / LaTeX writing.
Q 18 Risk Medium

A "predatory journal" is best characterised as one that:

  • ACharges no fees and is rigorously peer-reviewed
  • BCharges APCs but skips proper peer review and editorial oversight
  • CPublishes only invited reviews
  • DIs included in the DOAJ and UGC-CARE list
View solution
Correct Option: B
Predatory journals charge Article Processing Charges (APCs) without genuine peer review. Originally catalogued in Beall's list; now in Cabells Predatory Reports.
Q 19 Identifier Medium

Match each identifier with what it identifies:

(i) DOI (a) Researcher
(ii) ORCID (b) Book
(iii) ISBN (c) Article / digital object
(iv) ISSN (d) Journal
  • A(i)-c, (ii)-a, (iii)-b, (iv)-d
  • B(i)-a, (ii)-c, (iii)-b, (iv)-d
  • C(i)-d, (ii)-b, (iii)-c, (iv)-a
  • D(i)-b, (ii)-d, (iii)-a, (iv)-c
View solution
Correct Option: A
DOI → article; ORCID → researcher; ISBN → book; ISSN → journal.
Q 20 CC License Hard

A researcher uploads a dataset to Zenodo under the CC BY-SA licence. This means others can:

  • AUse the dataset only for non-commercial purposes
  • BUse & modify it, but cannot redistribute
  • CUse & modify with attribution AND must use the same licence on derivatives
  • DUse it only with the author's explicit permission each time
View solution
Correct Option: C
CC BY-SA = Attribution + Share-Alike. Free to use, modify and redistribute, with attribution AND derivative must use the same licence ("copyleft").

12.19 Quick Recall

ImportantQuick recall
  • ICT covers every step: discovery, design, sampling, collection, analysis, interpretation, reporting, sharing.
  • Boolean operators: AND (narrow), OR (broaden), NOT (exclude); “…” exact phrase; * truncation; ( ) grouping.
  • Citation indexes: Scopus (Elsevier), Web of Science (Clarivate).
  • Academic search: Google Scholar, Semantic Scholar, BASE, CORE, Lens, Dimensions.
  • Discipline-specific: PubMed (medicine), ERIC (education), JSTOR (humanities), arXiv (physics/CS), SSRN (social sci), bioRxiv/medRxiv/PsyArXiv, RePEc (econ), IEEE Xplore (engg).
  • Indian platforms (INFLIBNET, Gandhinagar): Shodhganga (theses) · Shodhgangotri (synopses) · e-ShodhSindhu (e-journals) · VIDWAN (experts) · N-LIST (colleges) · SWAYAM Prabha (DTH).
  • MoE-led: NDLI (IIT Kharagpur) · SWAYAM · NPTEL · e-PG Pathshala · NMEICT · AISHE · NIRF · ABC · NAD · DigiKlocker.
  • Compute infrastructure: C-DAC PARAM series (1991 PARAM 8000; PARAM Siddhi-AI, PARAM Ananta) · NSM (National Supercomputing Mission) · NKN (NIC, 10 Gbps backbone) · Garuda Grid.
  • Funding bodies: DST/SERB (now ANRF) · DBT · CSIR · ICMR · ICSSR · ICAR · UGC JRF/SRF · PMRF.
  • Open access infrastructure: DOAJ (journals) · OpenDOAR · ROAR (repositories) · SHERPA/RoMEO (self-archiving policies) · Plan S / cOAlition S (2018 funder mandate).
  • Reference managers: Zotero (OSS) · Mendeley (free Elsevier) · EndNote (paid) · RefWorks · JabRef (BibTeX) · Citavi · Paperpile · BibDesk.
  • Survey platforms: Google/MS Forms · SurveyMonkey · Qualtrics · LimeSurvey (OSS) · KoBoToolbox (OSS field) · ODK · REDCap.
  • Survey modes: CAPI · CATI · CAWI · CASI.
  • Quant analysis: SPSS · R · Python · SAS · Stata · JASP · jamovi · MATLAB · Minitab · Excel.
  • Qual analysis: NVivo · ATLAS.ti · MAXQDA · Dedoose · QDA Miner · Quirkos · Taguette.
  • Writing/typesetting: Word · Google Docs · LaTeX/Overleaf · Quarto · R Markdown · Jupyter · Scrivener · Notion · Obsidian.
  • Visualisation: Tableau · Power BI · ggplot2 · matplotlib · D3.js · QGIS · ArcGIS · Bhuvan (ISRO).
  • Plagiarism: Turnitin · iThenticate · Drillbit (UGC-empanelled, India).
  • AI-detection: GPTZero · Turnitin AI · Originality.ai · Copyleaks · ZeroGPT.
  • GenAI research tools: Elicit · Consensus · Scite · SciSpace · Connected Papers · Research Rabbit · Perplexity · ChatGPT · Claude · Gemini · Copilot.
  • GenAI disclosure: Major journals REQUIRE disclosure; AI CANNOT be a co-author.
  • Identifiers: DOI (article) · ISBN (book) · ISSN (journal) · ORCID (researcher) · PMID · arXiv ID.
  • CC licences (6): BY · BY-SA · BY-ND · BY-NC · BY-NC-SA · BY-NC-ND.
  • Risks: Predatory journals (Beall’s / Cabells) · Paper mills · Citation rings · Data fabrication · AI hallucinations · Hijacked journals.