Human–AI Collaboration Policy

BHĀRATĀYANA | भारतायन | ভারতায়ন

AI-Assisted Interdisciplinary Journal of Indian Knowledge Systems

Preamble

BHĀRATĀYANA recognizes that Artificial Intelligence (AI) is transforming the landscape of scholarly communication, research methodology, knowledge discovery, and academic publishing. The journal embraces the responsible and transparent use of AI technologies as tools that may enhance scholarly productivity, accessibility, and interdisciplinary collaboration.

At the same time, the journal affirms that human intellectual judgment, ethical responsibility, critical reasoning, and scholarly accountability remain indispensable to academic research. AI systems are instruments that may assist the research process but cannot replace the intellectual creativity, interpretive capacity, or ethical responsibility of human authors.

Accordingly, BHĀRATĀYANA adopts this Human–AI Collaboration Policy to ensure that the use of AI in research and scholarly publishing is transparent, ethical, responsible, and consistent with international standards of research integrity.

1. Guiding Principles

The journal's Human–AI Collaboration Policy is founded upon the following principles:

• Human responsibility for all scholarly content.

• Transparency in the use of AI technologies.

• Academic integrity and research honesty.

• Respect for intellectual property and copyright.

• Protection of confidential and sensitive information.

• Fairness, accountability, and reproducibility.

• Responsible innovation in scholarly communication.

2. Philosophy of Human–AI Collaboration

BHĀRATĀYANA views Artificial Intelligence as an academic assistant rather than an autonomous scholar.

The journal encourages a model of human–AI collaboration in which:

• human researchers formulate research questions;

• human authors exercise critical judgment;

• AI assists selected stages of scholarly work;

• final intellectual responsibility always remains with the human author(s).

AI should support—not replace—human scholarship.

3. Acceptable Uses of AI

Authors may use AI tools responsibly for purposes such as:

• language editing and grammar improvement;

• improving readability and clarity;

• formatting assistance;

• translation support;

• reference organization;

• coding assistance;

• data organization and visualization;

• transcription of interviews or audio recordings (where ethically permitted);

• preliminary literature exploration;

• preparation of graphical abstracts or illustrations with appropriate disclosure.

The use of AI should enhance scholarly communication without compromising originality or academic integrity.

4. Unacceptable Uses of AI

The following practices are prohibited:

• submitting AI-generated content as original human scholarship without disclosure;

• fabricating or falsifying research findings using AI;

• generating fictitious references, citations, quotations, or data;

• manipulating images or research results deceptively;

• using AI to conduct peer review on behalf of assigned reviewers without editorial permission;

• uploading confidential manuscripts, reviewer reports, or unpublished research to public AI platforms where confidentiality cannot be guaranteed;

• using AI in ways that violate copyright, privacy, or applicable laws.

Any misuse of AI may constitute research misconduct.

5. Authorship

Artificial Intelligence systems, chatbots, language models, or automated software tools cannot be listed as authors or co-authors.

Only natural persons who satisfy the journal's authorship criteria may be recognized as authors.

AI systems cannot:

• assume responsibility for published work;

• approve manuscript revisions;

• disclose conflicts of interest;

• accept copyright agreements;

• respond to peer review;

• be held accountable for research integrity.

6. Author Responsibilities

Authors remain fully responsible for every aspect of their manuscript, regardless of whether AI tools have been used.

Authors are accountable for:

• originality;

• factual accuracy;

• interpretation of evidence;

• appropriate citations;

• ethical compliance;

• data integrity;

• protection of confidential information;

• final approval of the manuscript.

The use of AI does not reduce or transfer these responsibilities.

7. Mandatory Disclosure

Authors must disclose any substantial use of AI during the preparation of a manuscript.

The disclosure should include:

• the name of the AI tool or system;

• the purpose for which it was used;

• the extent of its contribution;

• confirmation that the authors reviewed, verified, and accepted responsibility for the final content.

Routine spell-checking, grammar correction, or reference-management software normally does not require formal disclosure unless the software generated substantive content.

8. Verification of AI-Generated Content

Authors must carefully verify all AI-assisted outputs before submission.

They should ensure that:

• facts are accurate;

• references are authentic and traceable;

• quotations are genuine;

• interpretations are supported by evidence;

• translations are reliable;

• no fabricated information remains in the manuscript.

Authors should never rely solely on AI-generated responses without independent scholarly verification.

9. Copyright and Intellectual Property

Authors are responsible for ensuring that AI-assisted content does not infringe copyright, intellectual property rights, licensing conditions, or proprietary materials.

Any third-party material generated or reproduced with AI must comply with applicable copyright laws and the journal's Copyright Policy.

10. Privacy and Confidentiality

Authors, reviewers, and editors should exercise caution when using AI technologies.

Confidential or unpublished materials—including manuscripts under review, reviewer reports, personal data, or sensitive research information—should not be uploaded to AI systems unless appropriate safeguards and permissions are in place.

Protection of confidentiality remains a fundamental editorial responsibility.

11. AI and Peer Review

Reviewers and editors must not upload submitted manuscripts, reviewer comments, or confidential editorial correspondence to publicly accessible AI systems without explicit authorization from the Editorial Office.

Editorial confidentiality must be preserved throughout the peer-review process.

12. Editorial Oversight

The Editorial Board reserves the right to request clarification regarding the use of AI in any submitted manuscript.

Where necessary, authors may be asked to:

• explain how AI was used;

• provide additional documentation;

• revise AI-generated sections;

• remove inappropriate AI-generated material.

Failure to provide satisfactory clarification may affect editorial decisions.

13. Misuse of AI

The following may result in editorial action:

• undisclosed substantial AI use;

• fabricated references generated by AI;

• fabricated data or images;

• deceptive AI-generated scholarship;

• plagiarism facilitated through AI;

• misuse of AI during peer review.

Editorial actions may include:

• manuscript rejection;

• withdrawal from review;

• publication correction;

• article retraction;

• notification of relevant institutions where appropriate.

14. Commitment to Responsible Innovation

BHĀRATĀYANA supports innovation while maintaining the enduring values of scholarship: intellectual honesty, critical inquiry, ethical responsibility, transparency, and respect for evidence.

The journal believes that the future of academic publishing lies not in replacing human scholars with machines, but in fostering a responsible partnership in which Artificial Intelligence enhances—rather than diminishes—human creativity, wisdom, and scientific rigor.

15. Policy Review

As AI technologies continue to evolve, BHĀRATĀYANA will periodically review and update this policy to reflect emerging international standards, ethical best practices, and developments in scholarly communication.

Authors, reviewers, editors, and readers are encouraged to consult the latest version of this policy before engaging with the journal.

Human–AI Collaboration Disclosure (Recommended Statement)

Authors who have made substantial use of AI may include a statement such as:

"During the preparation of this manuscript, the authors used an Artificial Intelligence tool for language refinement and editorial assistance. All AI-assisted outputs were critically reviewed, verified, and revised by the authors. The authors accept full responsibility for the accuracy, originality, interpretation, and integrity of the final manuscript."

BHĀRATĀYANA | भारतायन | ভারতায়ন

Advancing scholarly excellence through responsible human intelligence, ethical artificial intelligence, interdisciplinary research, and the enduring values of Indian Knowledge Systems.