Historic moment for India; Executive Director of Quacquarelli Symonds on QS World University Rankings 2026

Ashwin Fernandes, noting the 390 per cent increase over the past decade, called it a "historic moment" for India.

Speaking with ANI, he said, "This is another historic moment for India because we've seen 390 per cent growth compared to the last ten years."

Highlighting IIT Delhi's jump in QS World University Ranking 2026 by 27 places to secure 123rd spot, Ashwin Fernandes said that it is due to its improvement of employer reputation and the citation indicator.

"Kudos to PM Modi led Government which is positioning India as a global leader and one of the global leaders is IIT Delhi which has improved his position by over 70 places in the last two years which due to its improvement of employer reputation and the citation indicator," Ashwin Fernandes said.

"Positioning IIT Delhi with such results truly makes India Vishwa Guru and a step forward in becoming a global leader in science, technology and higher education," he added.

The Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Delhi has emerged as the country's top-ranked institution, securing the 123rd spot globally -- a jump of 27 places from last year's position of 150.

Speaking about IIT Delhi overtaking IIT Bombay, Ashwin Fernandes said, "IIT Bombay has always been the frontrunner and has always led the rankings for the first time, IIT Delhi overtakes IIT Bombay to become the clear number one ranked university in India and 123 in the world, making it one of the best universities. It is due to various factors which QS considers and the impetus which the Indian Government has had on research and education,"

IIT Bombay and IIT Madras followed at 129th and 180th, respectively behind IIT Delhi. Notably, IIT Madras entered the global top 200 for the first time.

The rankings, released by global higher education analysts QS (Quacquarelli Symonds), cover over 1,500 universities from 106 countries and territories.

India is now the fourth most represented country, behind only the United States (192), the United Kingdom (90), and Mainland China (72).

"This year, India has added the most new universities to the QS rankings, with eight fresh entrants. It's a clear sign of a system evolving at both speed and scale," said Jessica Turner, CEO of QS. "India is rewriting the global higher education map."

IIT Delhi performed strongly in several indicators, ranking 50th globally in Employer Reputation, 86th in Citations per Faculty, and 142nd in Academic Reputation. Five Indian universities are now among the global top 100 in Employer Reputation, including IIT Bombay and IIT Kanpur.