LUCKNOW, March 29 -- After DrillBit software, used for spotting copied material, detected that 95% of the PhD theses submitted at the Lucknow University (LU) in January and February this year were plagiarised, the university in its new PhD Ordinance 2026 during its Academic Council on Saturday mandated submission of thesis in soft copy format along with an affidavit ensuring that the work is plagiarism-free and AI assistance is less than 10%. Prof JP Saini, vice chancellor, said: "The thesis will be sent only in soft copy format (PDFs) for evaluation and if the examiner does not give their consent to become an examiner for the PhD viva within 7 days, they can be replaced after a reminder." Additionally, it has also been decided that meritorious students with four year graduation can pursue a PhD. Teachers in self-financed courses, whose appointment process is similar to regular posts, will now be able to become research supervisors. Given the complexity of research and interdisciplinary needs, international co-supervisors can now also be appointed. The council approved conducting biannual admission and graded selection of the research scholars. "The university will conduct PhD admission twice a year (May and December) in three phases," Saini added. Candidates will be evaluated during the interview based on a transparent 'Academic Index '. The new PhD Ordinance has fixed the minimum period of research at 3 years and maximum at 6 years....