Himalayan Publisher is committed to maintaining the integrity, transparency, and credibility of scholarly publishing. All authors, editors, reviewers, and editorial board members are required to disclose any actual, potential, or perceived conflicts of interest that could influence the research, peer review, editorial decisions, or publication process.

This policy is based on the recommendations of the Committee on Publication Ethics (COPE) and the International Committee of Medical Journal Editors (ICMJE) and applies uniformly to all journals published by Himalayan Publisher.

Purpose

The purpose of this policy is to promote transparency, minimize bias, and ensure that editorial decisions are based solely on the scholarly merit of submitted manuscripts.

Author Responsibilities

Authors must disclose all financial, personal, institutional, or professional relationships that could be perceived as influencing the research or its interpretation. Examples of conflicts of interest include, but are not limited to:

• Financial support, grants, or funding. 
• Employment or consultancy. 
• Stock ownership or shareholding. 
• Honoraria or speaker fees. 
• Patents or intellectual property interests. 
• Personal or professional relationships that may influence the research. 

Authors must include a Conflict of Interest Statement within their manuscript. If no conflicts exist, authors should clearly state:

"The authors declare that they have no conflicts of interest."

Reviewer Responsibilities

Reviewers must disclose any actual or potential conflicts of interest before accepting a review assignment. Reviewers should decline to review manuscripts if they have conflicts that could compromise their objectivity, including:

• Personal or professional relationships with the authors. 
• Collaborative or competitive relationships. 
• Financial interests related to the research. 
• Institutional affiliations that may affect impartiality. 

Reviewers must maintain confidentiality and must not use unpublished information for personal or professional advantage.

Editor Responsibilities

Editors and Editorial Board members must disclose any conflicts of interest and recuse themselves from handling manuscripts where an actual or perceived conflict exists. In such cases, another qualified editor will be assigned to oversee the editorial process.

Editorial decisions must be based exclusively on the manuscript's scientific quality, originality, ethical compliance, and relevance to the journal.

Funding Disclosure

Authors must disclose all sources of financial support, sponsorship, or funding associated with the research. The role of the funding organization, if any, in study design, data collection, analysis, manuscript preparation, or publication decisions should also be clearly described.

Management of Conflicts of Interest

Where conflicts of interest are identified, the Editorial Office will assess whether appropriate measures can adequately manage the conflict. If a conflict cannot be managed appropriately, the manuscript may be reassigned, additional disclosures may be requested, or the manuscript may be rejected if necessary to preserve the integrity of the publication process.

Failure to Disclose

Failure to disclose relevant conflicts of interest may result in editorial action, including manuscript rejection, publication of a correction, expression of concern, retraction of the article, or other appropriate measures in accordance with COPE guidance.

Policy Applicability

This Conflicts of Interest Policy is the official policy of Himalayan Publisher and applies uniformly to all journals published under the publisher. All authors, reviewers, editors, and editorial board members are expected to comply with this policy to ensure fairness, transparency, and trust in scholarly publishing.