Plagiarism Policy

There should be zero plagiarism. However, there may be similarity in the submitted articles, which is then analyzed for any possibility of plagiarism. This similarity should also not exceed 19%.

• There should not be any missing reference of work cited in the text by the author in the list of references at the end of the article
• There should not be any similarity of more than 5% from a single source
• The editorial board has the right to evaluate a submitted paper to determine whether any similarity constitutes plagiarism.
• The editorial board may ask the author/s to provide the data files and the results drawn by the authors

Self-Plagiarism

IJBAS exclusively considers original work, carefully examining any resemblance to existing work, including that of the authors themselves, through plagiarism detection measures. Any reuse of the author's own work must adhere to research requirements and norms. Research papers derived from theses must also comply with standard similarity guidelines.

Authorship

All authors must make significant contributions to a research paper, with minor contributors appropriately acknowledged. Authorship issues typically involve:
• Omission of a contributor from the author list
• Inclusion of individuals who did not contribute to the manuscript
• Determination of the order of authors and their respective contributions

The editorial board of IJBAS has final authority in resolving authorship disputes. However, as research processes occur before manuscript submission, IJBAS and its editors cannot assess individual contributions. Authorship cannot be altered after completion of the peer-review process. Exceptions may be considered if the article has not undergone peer review, provided the corresponding author presents a valid reason for the change.

Defamation/Libel

If a study involves organizations or individuals, their consent is required. Any defamatory content identified by the editorial board or reported by the concerned parties may result in rejection of the submitted article.
Articles containing unverified, controversial, or inaccurate statements about organizations or individuals may be subject to requests for revisions or rejection by IJBAS.
Critiques and reviews of products and services are welcome, provided they are constructive and not intended to harm.
In cases where published statements are deemed defamatory, IJBAS reserves the right to retract the article and issue an apology.

Fabrication

Fabricating data or results, or misrepresenting findings, is considered fabrication. If fabrication is discovered, the editorial board of IJBAS reserves the right to reject the article. If discovered after publication, the article may be retracted. Additionally, the author/s may face a ban from publishing in IJBAS.

Unethical Research and Testing

Authors must adhere to relevant national and international procedures concerning data protection, privacy rights, medical testing on humans and animals, and child protection. They must provide all necessary consent and regulatory forms from the appropriate authorities to the editors and publishers at IJBAS. IJBAS encourages authors to show how their study contributes to societal advancement. If a study is found to violate these procedures, and this is verified by the appropriate regulatory body, IJBAS may retract the publication.

Conflict of Interest

Authors, editors, and reviewers must declare all conflicts of interest, which include:

• Personal and financial interests in the study's outcomes.
• Undisclosed financial support for the study from an interested third party.
• Personal and financial interests in suppressing the study.

Before the review, the manuscript must include a note highlighting any financial support from third parties or other potential conflicts of interest. Suspected conflicts of interest should be reported to IJBAS, such as concerns about an editor, which should be raised with the journal publisher.

In such cases, IJBAS will:

1. Respond efficiently and professionally to emails and letters of complaint.
2. Remain completely objective and fair.
3. Scrutinize the evidence thoroughly before taking further steps.
4. Approach the accused individuals to clarify their position before taking action.
5. Ensure sufficient time is provided for all parties to respond.
6. Keep all parties informed of decisions, including copyright owners, authors, and editors.
7. Uphold the author's moral rights and ensure accurate record-keeping in the literature.

The final decision in any disputed case will rest with IJBSA and its editorial board, following a fair and considered process. Note that IJBAS reserves the right to terminate the process if the complainant provides false information or behaves inappropriately or threateningly towards the IJBAS team.

Ethical Guidelines for COPE

IJBAS also considers the Ethical Guidelines of the Committee on Publication Ethics while solving ethical issues of publication in the journal. These guidelines can be downloaded using the following link:

https://publicationethics.org/guidance/Guidelines