Delhi University to roll out ‘fake-proof’ degrees

Every year, over 200,000 students graduate from the university, and officials said that every once in a while, they come across a fake certificate

Delhi University is set to overhaul its degree document with additional security features that, officials said, will make forging these certificates harder. The new degree, which is set to be rolled out in January for the convocation of the batch that passed out in 2023 on February 24, will also feature the student’s mother’s name along with the father’s name, said examination branch officials involved in the redesign.

The new certificate will have a barcode and a QR code. These codes have information stored in it, hence, when scanned on a phone, it will show the students’ name, roll number. (Sanchit Khanna/HT PHOTO)

Every year, more than 200,000 students graduate from the university across various courses, and officials said that every once in a while, they come across a fake certificate. The redesign, they said, will reduce the number of counterfeit degrees.

Ajay Arora, officer on special duty, examination branch said, “The previous redesign was done in 2013-14, and before that, the certificates were handwritten. The older certificate had some security features too, but many new security features have been added to the new certificate to ensure that they are authentic and easier to verify.”

To be sure, DU degrees used to be of A3 size, but in the 2013-14 redesign, the size was changed to A4. The handwritten certificates were reduced in size after students complained that maintaining them was tough, and that they were difficult to photocopy.

Arora said the new certificate, on first glance, looks like a more modern version of the 2013-14 design, with a barcode and a QR code. He said, “These codes have information stored in it, hence, when scanned on a phone, it will show the students’ name, roll number etc… We have added the name of the student’s mother in addition to father’s name as we believe that it is equally important. And in case the student has a single parent, that will be accommodated too.”

He added that the new document also comprises a number of security features such as invisible logos which can be seen only in ultraviolet (UV) light, and microprinting, which is often used on currency. It will also feature reverse microtext, which can be seen only microscopically, along with rainbow coloured foiling.

The redesigned certificate will also be waterproof, heat-resistant, and resistant to several chemicals, the officials said.