Beijing, Sep 3 (PTI) Four prominent Chinese academics have lost their posts, and more than 40 researchers at universities and hospitals are facing investigations as China has launched its largest-ever public crackdown on academic misconduct.
On August 26, the National Natural Science Foundation of China (NSFC) published details of 31 new misconduct cases at universities and hospitals across China, involving more than 40 researchers, the Hong Kong-based South China Morning Post reported on Thursday.
The NSFC announcement came nearly two months after Chinese President Xi Jinping called for a crackdown on academic misconduct.
Four prominent academics lost their posts at leading universities after Student Geng, a high-profile blogger and PhD dropout, publicly identified them in April and flagged their research for alleged misconduct, the report said.
All of the four academics had been recognised by the National Science Fund for Distinguished Young Scholars, an honour that frequently serves as a stepping stone to admission to China’s top science and engineering academies, it said.
Three of them had served as deans or associate deans of their respective schools.
Geng’s revelations on social media triggered the NSFC’s largest-ever investigation into academic misconduct.
Naming the four academics in its August notice, the foundation revoked their funding and titles, ordered them to return more than 10 million yuan (USD 1.49 million) in previously awarded grants, and barred them from reapplying for funding for three to seven years.
Within China’s research community, the move is widely seen as a “death sentence” for an academic career, the Post report said.
President Xi earlier called for “stricter standards” and “more concrete measures” to tackle misconduct and “foster a clean and upright research ecosystem,” while addressing a joint meeting of the National Science and Technology Awards, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Chinese Academy of Engineering and China Association for Science and Technology.
China has continued to increase investment in scientific research. Under the 15th Five-Year Plan, Beijing has set a target for society-wide research and development spending to grow by at least seven per cent annually from 2026 to 2030.
But the rapid expansion of research funding has also heightened concerns about academic misconduct and oversight of research spending. PTI KJV FHK FHK FHK
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