The National Council of Educational Research and Training (NCERT) has officially been recognised as an institution “Deemed to be University" by the Union Government, signalling a significant change in the function of the nation's leading body for school education, as reported by The Indian Express.
This enhanced status notably broadens NCERT's responsibilities beyond mere school curriculum formulation, allowing the organisation to introduce academic offerings, including doctoral and innovative programmes.
NCERT will be under UGC
Nevertheless, this shift raises concerns regarding an existing internal debate within NCERT, where faculty had expressed worries that such a change could undermine its independence.
As the report noted, in 2022, one assistant professor warned the director that “by deciding to grant ‘Deemed to be University' status to NCERT, all we are trying to do is surrender our academic autonomy to the UGC,” arguing that this transition could diminish NCERT's role as the country's foremost authority on school education.
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A notification issued by the Ministry of Education on Monday (March 30) confirms NCERT, along with its six constituent units, as an institution deemed to be a university under a “distinct category” as stipulated by Section 3 of the University Grants Commission (UGC) Act, 1956.
“The Ministry of Education, following the advice of the UGC, hereby declares the National Council of Educational Research and Training… consisting of… six constituent units as an institution deemed to be a university under a distinct category,” it states.
These constituent units comprise regional institutes of education located in Ajmer, Bhopal, Bhubaneswar, Mysuru, and Shillong, as well as the Pandit Sunderlal Sharma Central Institute of Vocational Education in Bhopal.
The declaration is the culmination of a multi-phase procedure that commenced with NCERT's application on the UGC portal, followed by a Letter of Intent issued in August 2023. According to the notification, the institution submitted a compliance report in November 2025, which was accepted by the UGC's expert committee and ratified during its 595th meeting on January 30 this year.
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What changes after the NCERT becomes "deemed to be university"?
The notification instructs NCERT to “take necessary measures to initiate research programmes as well as doctoral and innovative academic programmes."
It also places NCERT directly under the regulatory oversight of the UGC, a major concern previously voiced by critics. The notification clarifies, "The academic programmes to be offered at NCERT… shall conform to the norms and standards prescribed by the UGC," and that any new courses or off-campus centres must adhere to UGC regulations.
Additionally, NCERT is prohibited from engaging in commercial activities, as the notification indicates it “shall not engage or indulge in any activities that are of commercial and profit-making in nature”.
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