Photo by Muhammad Zaid on Unsplash
On 30 March 2026, India's Ministry of Education quietly issued a notification that will change the shape of the country's education system in ways that are only now beginning to sink in. The National Council of Educational Research and Training, which is better known as NCERT, has been officially granted the status of an institution deemed to be a university, under a distinct category.
The UGC's expert committee reviewed NCERT's application and recommended approval, which the commission then endorsed. The process had actually been in motion for nearly three years, starting with a Letter of Intent issued by the Ministry in August 2023 and followed by NCERT submitting its compliance report in November 2025. In plain words, it is an organisation that has, since 1961, been responsible for writing school textbooks and advising the government on school curriculum, and it can now give out its own university degrees.
What Is NCERT, and Why Does This Matter?
Most Indians know NCERT through the textbooks their children bring home. The organisation was set up in 1961 to assist and advise both central and state governments on policies for improving school education. Its main work includes research in school education and preparing and publishing textbooks, supplementary material, newsletters, and journals. That has been its track for over six decades. Now, that track record has widened considerably. This new status transforms NCERT from a primarily advisory and resource-development body into a degree-granting institution. It can now independently design and launch undergraduate, postgraduate, doctoral, and diploma-level programmes, and it can award degrees in its own name.
What Changes on the Ground?
One of the more immediate and practical changes involves NCERT's Regional Institutes of Education. Currently, the graduate and postgraduate programmes offered by these institutes are affiliated with local universities like Barkatullah University in Bhopal, MDS University in Ajmer, University of Mysuru, Utkal University in Bhubaneswar, and North-Eastern Hill University in Shillong.
Now, these institutions will come directly under NCERT as a deemed university, meaning they no longer need to operate under the umbrella of state universities. The six constituent units covered by this notification include regional institutes of education in Ajmer, Bhopal, Bhubaneswar, Mysuru, and Shillong, as well as the Pandit Sunderlal Sharma Central Institute of Vocational Education in Bhopal.
This is a significant structural shift. Teacher training programmes in these cities will now carry degrees issued directly by NCERT rather than by their respective state universities.
Rules That Come With the New Status
The government has made it clear that this is not a blank cheque. The conditions attached to this status prevent NCERT from engaging in any activities that are commercial or profit-making in nature, and they require that all academic courses must conform to norms and standards set by the UGC and other relevant statutory bodies.
NCERT, like other higher education institutions, will now need to maintain an Academic Bank of Credits and upload student credit scores in digital lockers. The institution will also be required to participate in national rankings and accreditation systems.
The Ministry has also directed NCERT to take appropriate steps to begin research programmes, doctoral programmes, and innovative academic programmes. There is a clear expectation that NCERT should not simply sit with its new status, and it is expected to actively build a culture of research and academic innovation.
Why This Makes Sense and Why It Raises Questions?
The argument in favour of this move is straightforward. India's school education system has long suffered from a disconnect between what is researched and what is taught. If NCERT can run its own doctoral programmes and produce researchers focused on pedagogy, curriculum design, and teacher training, the quality of thinking that feeds into school education could improve meaningfully.
The recognition of NCERT as a deemed university is expected to bridge gaps between school education and higher academic research, and may enhance institutional capacity for teacher training, curriculum innovation, and interdisciplinary studies.
This also fits with the broader vision of the National Education Policy 2020, which has consistently pushed for research-driven education and greater institutional autonomy. NCERT is expected to play a pivotal role in making Indian education more dynamic and research-oriented while staying rooted in national needs.
But there is a legitimate concern that deserves honest attention. NCERT is already the most influential body in school education in India. Its textbooks shape what hundreds of millions of children learn. Giving it the additional responsibility of running university programmes, managing degree structures, maintaining national rankings, and building research programmes is a substantial ask.
The organisation that is supposed to be laser-focused on improving what happens in Indian classrooms will now also need to think about admissions, accreditation, student credits, and academic rankings. Whether these two roles strengthen each other or quietly compete for attention and resources is a question that has not been fully answered.
The Bigger Picture
There is a certain logic to what the government has done here. Rather than creating a new institution from scratch, it has expanded an existing one with deep roots in the education system. This distinct category recognition reflects NCERT's unique position as the national nodal agency for school education, distinguishing it from conventional universities while empowering it to contribute more directly to higher education in the teacher training domain.
The intent is clearly to make NCERT the central engine of education reform in India and influence both what students learn in school and how the people who teach them are trained at the university level.
Whether the institution has the bandwidth to do both jobs well is the real question. The notification has been issued. The status has been granted. Now comes the harder part of actually building something new while not losing sight of what NCERT has always meant to do. The next few years will tell us whether this was a bold reform or an overstretched mandate. For now, the textbook body has become a university.
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