Editorial policies & Ethical Publishing

Overview

Kerala Journal of Ayurveda respects directions of Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE), abide by its Code of Conduct, and aim to adhere to its Best Practice Guidelines.

Authors, editors, and reviewers are expected to be aware of, and comply with, best practice in publication ethics.

Authors are expected to be aware of, and comply with, best practice in publication ethics specifically but not limited to authorship (for example avoidance of ghost or guest authorship), dual submission, plagiarism, manipulation of figures, competing interests and compliance with policies on research ethics. Details are provided below or in related documents.

Reviewers and editors are required to treat manuscripts fairly and in confidence, and to declare any competing interests.

We will vigorously investigate allegations of research or publication misconduct and we reserve the right to contact authors’ institutions, funders or regulatory bodies if needed.

In cases of suspected or alleged misconduct, we will follow the COPE flowcharts and may also seek advice at the COPE forum. If we find conclusive evidence of misconduct we will take steps to correct the scientific record, which may include issuing a correction or retraction.

If you have any concerns about potential misconduct, please email the journal. Address correspondence to the journal’s Editor-in-Chief, or Managing Editor as appropriate. Concerned readers should not rely solely on posting their comments on blogs, social media or other third party websites to make us aware of concerns, but should ensure to contact the journal directly.

Publication Ethics and Publication Malpractice Statement

Kerala Journal of Ayurveda is committed to maintaining the highest ethical standards. In order to ensure the outcome of providing our readers with an academic journal of high quality, Kerala Journal of Ayurveda is guided by the following principles:

The editor of the journal is responsible for deciding which of the articles submitted to the journal should be published. The editor may be guided by the policies of the journal's editorial board and constrained by such legal requirements as shall then be in force regarding libel, copyright infringement and plagiarism. The editors must ensure the confidentiality of the submitted works until they are published, except in the case of suspicion of double submission. In case the editors decide not to publish a material, the manuscript should not be used for other purposes without the express written consent of the author. The editor of a submitted manuscript must not have a stake in the authors.

The reviewers of Kerala Journal of Ayurveda assist the editors in taking the decision of publishing a submitted manuscript. We follow Blind Review process. Any manuscripts received for review must be treated as confidential documents. They must not be shown to or discussed with others except as authorized by the editor. The reviewers should not consider manuscripts in which they have conflicts of interest with any of the authors, companies, or institutions connected to the papers.

Submitting the same manuscript to more than one journal concurrently constitutes unethical publishing behavior and is unacceptable. Proper acknowledgment of the work of others must always be given. Authors should cite publications that have been influential in determining the nature of the reported work.

Plagiarism Policy

Plagiarism is not acceptable in Kerala Journal of Ayurveda submissions. Plagiarized content will not be considered for publication. If plagiarism is identified, we will follow COPE guidelines.

The authors should ensure that they have written entirely original works, and if the authors have used the work and/or words of others that this has been appropriately cited or quoted.

Allegations of research or publishing misconduct

Kerala Journal of Ayurveda follows the COPE guidelines and flowcharts for handling matters of publishing ethics allegations and how to identify papers with research or publishing misconduct (including but not limited to referee misconduct, citation manipulation, and data fabrication and falsification), how to prevent their publication, and how to deal with allegations of research or publishing misconduct after publication. The procedures followed by Kerala Journal of Ayurveda are summarized below.

Ethics Panel: Managing Editor, Editor in Chief, ad hoc experts (as required).

The Ethics Panel may also consult with senior members of the Editorial Board and other parties, such as publishers, university/institution investigative bodies, etc may be advised of, be consulted during, or be involved in Kerala Journal of Ayurveda inquiries.

Procedure for handling allegations of misconduct in submitted manuscripts: 

• Submissions to Kerala Journal of Ayurveda journal may be assessed for similarity with other published material and/or image screening to check for originality and image manipulation, respectively.
• Editors, reviewers, and/or staff bring suspected instances of ethics misconduct to the attention of the journal Editor in Chief (EiC) and the Journals' Managing Editor.
• The EiC and Managing Editor review the allegation and make a preliminary assessment. If they decide that there is merit to the allegation the manuscript is placed on hold.
• Additional analyses, including similarity checks and forensic image analyses, may be requested as necessary.
• The EiC sends a letter of inquiry to the corresponding author summarizing the allegation and requesting an explanation. Original data may be requested.
• The Ethics Panel convenes to discuss the allegations, explanations, possible corrective actions, and sanctions. Possible sanctions include warnings, increased scrutiny of subsequent manuscripts, and prohibitions from publishing in Kerala Journal of Ayurveda journal for a period of time, up to possible lifetime bans for the most severe cases.
• The corresponding author and co-authors are notified of the Ethics Panel's decision.
• Authors may appeal the decision by writing to the Kerala Journal of Ayurveda Ethics Committee.
• Kerala Journal of Ayurveda's priority is to preserve the integrity of the scientific record. Additionally, we hope to educate authors on issues of misconduct. Therefore, manuscripts submitted by authors who receive warnings and/or sanctions due to ethical misconduct will likely undergo increased scrutiny. Repeated offenses will likely result in more severe sanctions.
• In cases of alleged fraud or misconduct, the Ethics Panel will notify the authors' institution(s). Kerala Journal of Ayurveda will comply with their investigations and will abide by their decisions. 

Additional procedures for handling allegations of misconduct in published manuscripts: 

• Following the Code of Federal Regulations concerning timelines for pursuing allegations of research misconduct, Kerala Journal of Ayurveda will pursue allegations of publishing misconduct made within six years of publication. Kerala Journal of Ayurveda may pursue allegations of misconduct regarding older papers if these papers provide evidence of an extensive pattern of misconduct.
• Kerala Journal of Ayurveda will not comment on allegations made on public websites or through social media.
• The Ethics Panel will decide the appropriate measures to ensure that the scientific record is appropriately corrected in response to an allegation. An authors' correction may be allowed, if the conclusions of the manuscript are not altered by the infringement. However, the manuscript may be retracted if the authors' explanation is insufficient, the authors are unable to provide original data, and/or the conclusions of the manuscript are no longer supported. 

Appealing an Kerala Journal of Ayurveda Ethics Decision
To appeal a decision made by an Kerala Journal of Ayurveda journal ethics panel authors must contact, in writing, the Kerala Journal of Ayurveda Ethics Committee within 30 days of receipt of the decision.

COMPLAINTS PROCESS

The journal’s process for authors to submit a complaint - In case, if an author has any complaint on the publishing process or on any of the editors, please contact the publisher by email (kjayurveda@gmail.com).