Sources in the Ministry of Education have told news agencies that the National Council of Educational Research and Training (NCERT) is likely to be granted deemed-to-be-university status, a move that would widen its research remit and allow it to award academic degrees. The University Grants Commission (UGC) is expected to hold a meeting shortly to formalise the decision, officials said.
NCERT deemed university: what would change
Currently an autonomous body under the Ministry of Education, NCERT is responsible for curriculum design, textbook development, educational research and teacher training for school education. If the UGC approves the proposal, NCERT would gain full academic autonomy associated with deemed universities, enabling it to offer its own graduate, postgraduate and doctoral programmes.
Sources told ANI that the groundwork for the transition has already been completed and that the UGC’s meeting could bring a formal announcement by the end of the month. The institution will remain primarily funded by the Department of School Education and Literacy within the Ministry of Education.
Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan flagged the plan in 2023, saying that transforming NCERT into a research university would open avenues for global collaboration and strengthen its contribution to international educational research. Officials believe the change will allow NCERT to scale up in-house research, deepen teacher-education programmes and engage more actively with universities at home and abroad.
Recognition as a deemed university follows a prescribed UGC process under the UGC Act, 1956. The status is conferred on higher-education institutions that demonstrate excellence in a particular field, following recommendations from the UGC and approval by the central government. According to the UGC, there are around 145 deemed universities in India; the Indian Institute of Science was the first to receive the status in 1958.
For NCERT, deemed status would mean greater control over course design, admission criteria and academic standards. That autonomy could help the council innovate teacher-training curricula, expand specialised research strands in pedagogy and assessment, and grant recognised degrees to participants in its postgraduate and doctoral programmes.
Experts say the change may also attract new research funding and international partnerships, boosting India’s capacity in education research. NCERT’s existing role in setting school standards and publishing model textbooks would sit alongside a stronger presence in higher education and scholarly publishing.
Stakeholders will be watching the UGC meeting closely for confirmation. If approved, the change is expected to be implemented in phases so that existing projects, collaborations and funding arrangements continue uninterrupted while new academic structures are put in place.
Officials have emphasised that the move aims to preserve NCERT’s core mission of strengthening school education even as it acquires new powers to award degrees and expand research. The government’s stated timeline suggests a formal update could arrive within weeks of the UGC’s next meeting.
Key Takeaways:
- NCERT is likely to be granted deemed-to-be-university status, with a UGC meeting expected soon.
- As an NCERT deemed university, the body would be able to award graduate, postgraduate and doctoral degrees and expand in-house research programmes.
- The Department of School Education and Literacy will continue primary funding while NCERT broadens its role in India’s higher education ecosystem.
