Editor Guidelines

Editors of MycoIndia: Journal of Indian Fungi play a crucial role in managing the peer review process, making editorial decisions, and ensuring that the journal maintains high ethical and scientific standards. These guidelines outline the responsibilities and expectations of editors to ensure fairness, transparency, and integrity in the publication process. 

 Editors are responsible for:

• Overseeing the peer review process and ensuring timely, fair, and rigorous evaluation of submitted manuscripts.
• Making independent and unbiased decisions on manuscript acceptance, revision, or rejection.
• Ensuring that journal policies and ethical standards are followed throughout the editorial process.
• Communicating effectively with authors, reviewers, and other members of the editorial team.

Editors must:

• Maintain strict confidentiality about submitted manuscripts.
• Share manuscript details only with those involved in the peer review process (reviewers, handling editors, editorial staff).
• Ensure that unpublished data or findings are not used for personal or professional gain.

Editors must recuse themselves from handling a manuscript if they have any conflict of interest, including: 

• A personal or professional relationship with the authors.
• A competing research interest in the same field.
• A financial stake in the research outcomes.

If an editor has a conflict of interest, the manuscript should be assigned to another editor.

Editors must ensure that each manuscript is evaluated based on its scientific quality, originality, and relevance to MycoIndia, without bias toward the author(s). Manuscripts should be assigned to qualified reviewers based on subject expertise. Editors should encourage constructive feedback from reviewers and ensure that authors receive fair and professional critiques. Editors must not allow political, institutional, or personal biases to influence editorial decisions.

If errors, data inconsistencies, or ethical concerns (e.g., plagiarism, data fabrication, authorship disputes) arise in a submitted or published manuscript, editors should: 

• Investigate the issue promptly in line with COPE (Committee on Publication Ethics) guidelines.
• Work with the editorial board to determine whether a correction, retraction, or editorial note is required.
• Notify authors and relevant parties transparently about any necessary actions.

 Editors must ensure that:

• Research involving human or animal subjects has appropriate ethical approvals and is conducted in compliance with guidelines.
• Any reported ethical violations in submitted or published papers are investigated appropriately.
• Submissions adhere to publication ethics, copyright laws, and data sharing policies.

Senior editors should mentor new editorial board members and help them navigate the editorial workflow. Editors should promote a collaborative and inclusive environment within the journal.