Uttar Pradesh and Tamil Nadu emerged as the joint leaders in the geographical distribution of India's top 100 management institutions in the National Institutional Ranking Framework (NIRF) 2025 rankings, with 12 institutions each.
An EdexLive analysis of the official Management rankings for 2023, 2024 and 2025 shows that both states increased their representation over the three-year period, while Maharashtra and Delhi maintained consistent numbers.
Tamil Nadu recorded a steady increase, from 10 institutions in 2023 to 11 in 2024 and 12 in 2025. Uttar Pradesh had 11 institutions in both 2023 and 2024 before reaching 12 in 2025.
Maharashtra and Delhi each had nine institutions in the top 100 in all three editions, making them the next most represented regions after Uttar Pradesh and Tamil Nadu.
Gujarat, Odisha and Punjab also maintained consistent representation, with five institutions each across the three years.
Karnataka, however, saw its count decline from six in 2023 to five in 2024, remaining at five in 2025.
Rajasthan improved from four institutions in 2023 and 2024 to five in 2025.
Haryana's representation declined from six institutions in 2023 to four in 2024 and remained unchanged in 2025.
While Uttar Pradesh and Tamil Nadu led in the overall number of top-100 institutions in 2025, the distribution among the top 10 presented a different picture.
Maharashtra was the only state with two institutions in the top 10 in both 2023 and 2024.
In 2025, the top 10 were distributed across 10 different states and Union Territories, with each accounting for one institution.
The Indian Institute of Management Ahmedabad in Gujarat retained the first position throughout the three-year period.
IIM Bangalore in Karnataka remained second, while IIM Kozhikode in Kerala held third place in all three editions.
Meanwhile, IIT Delhi improved from fifth position in 2023 to fourth in 2024 and retained that position in 2025.
IIM Lucknow moved from sixth in 2023 to seventh in 2024 before reaching fifth in 2025.
Among the southern states, Tamil Nadu had the highest representation in the top 100 across all three editions.
Karnataka followed with six institutions in 2023 and five each in 2024 and 2025.
Kerala improved from three institutions in 2023 to four in 2024, maintaining that count in 2025.
Telangana had three institutions in 2023, four in 2024 and three in 2025.
Andhra Pradesh's representation stood at three institutions in both 2023 and 2024 before declining to two in 2025.
The three-year comparison shows that the geographical distribution of India's top management institutions has remained relatively stable, although some states recorded modest changes.
A higher number of institutions in the top 100, however, does not necessarily translate into stronger representation among the highest-ranked institutions.
The NIRF Management rankings assess participating institutions on parameters including teaching, learning and resources; research and professional practice; graduation outcomes; outreach and inclusivity; and perception.
The findings reflect the number of institutions appearing in the published rankings, rather than the overall quality of management education across an entire state.