Another important day to be marked in the history of making India a global superpower. Long-awaited, the new education policy was approved by the Union Cabinet at a meeting presided over by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Wednesday, 29th July 2020. The new education system aims at bringing in transformation reforms in the education system of schools and higher education. Replacing the 34-year-old education system is another major move in the direction of strengthening India as a global power.
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During the tenure of former Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi, in 1985, the Ministry of Education was assigned a new name as the Human Resource Development (HRD). And the National Education System (NEP) was formed in 1986. Former Prime Minister PV Narsimha Rao was the first HRD minister under the Rajiv Gandhi Cabinet.
Latest Updates
2024: Curriculum Integration and Expanded Testing
January 2024 – New textbooks for Classes 1 and 2 launched
Based on the new curriculum textbooks framework aligned with the new NCF-FS. The content was designed to be more engaging through stories and activities, connecting learning to real-life situations.
July 2024 – CUET expanded to more universities and courses
The CUET standardized entrance test, initially for central universities, was adopted by a greater number of state and private universities, further standardizing entry into higher education nationwide.
August 2024 – UGC issued guidelines for NCrF implementation
The University Grants Commission made the adoption of the unified credit framework mandatory for higher education institutions. The guidelines specified how credits from various sources, including online courses, vocational training, or on-the-job experience, could be recorded and transferred into a student’s academic profile.
2023: Flexibility in Degrees and Credit Unification
April 2023 – National Curriculum Framework for School Education (NCF-SE) draft released
This draft proposed changes for Classes 3–12. Key proposals included holding board exams twice a year to test understanding, not just memorization, and providing more flexibility in subject choices by blurring the rigid lines between arts, science, and commerce. Encourages project-based and experiential learning.
July 2023 – UGC introduced “Multiple Entry and Exit” in colleges
This reform gave students the option to leave and re-enter a degree program at various points. Students would receive a Certificate
- After 1 year: Certificate
- After 2 years: Diploma
- After 3 years: Bachelor’s degree
- After 4 years: Bachelor’s with Research
Allow flexibility to students if someone wants to pause their studies for any personal or financial reasons.
August 2023 – Draft National Credit Framework (NCrF) released
The NCrF established a unified system that measures learning across school, higher education, and vocational training using credit points. This structure gave equal value to academic and skill-based learning and made it easier for students to move between academic and vocational courses.
2022: Curriculum Revision and Unified Admissions
April 2022 – National Curriculum Framework for Foundational Stage (NCF-FS)
This was the first major revision of the school curriculum under NEP 2020, focusing on ages 3–8 (pre-school to Class 2). It replaced rote learning with teaching methods centered on play, toys, and activities to build basic learning habits and curiosity.
July 2022 – CUET (Common University Entrance Test) was introduced
CUET became the single standardized entrance exam for admission into all central universities. Conducted by the National Testing Agency (NTA), it reduced the burden on students by allowing them to appear for one test and apply to many universities with the same score.
2021: Foundational Digital and Learning Goals
August 2021 – Academic Bank of Credits (ABC) portal launched
This digital platform collects and stores academic credits earned by students from various courses or institutions. It allows students to take breaks from their studies and later resume from where they left off without losing their progress, supporting flexible learning across different platforms.
October 2021 – NIPUN Bharat Mission rolled out
The mission—National Initiative for Proficiency in Reading with Understanding and Numeracy—set a national goal for every child in Classes 1–3 to achieve basic reading comprehension and numerical skills by the 2026–27 academic year. Its focus is on early foundational skills and activity-based teaching.
The new NEP also includes the renaming of the HRD Ministry back to the Education Ministry. Promoting the spirit of “Ek Bharat Shreshtha Bharat”, Prime Minister Narendra Modi tweeted, “Aspects such as widening the availability of scholarships, strengthening infrastructure for Open and Distance Learning, Online Education, and increasing the usage of technology have received great attention in the NEP. These are vital reforms for the education sector.”
In the Tweet thread, welcoming the NEP, he said, “I wholeheartedly welcome the approval of the National Education Policy 2020! This was a long-overdue and much-awaited reform in the education sector, which will transform millions of lives in the times to come.”
The new education system can prove to be a turning stone in the times to come. Some have welcomed it with open minds, and for some, the changes introduced are still confusing. To make it easy to understand for the common man, here are some of the major highlights of the NEP.
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Highlights of the New Education Policy
- All higher education institutes, excluding the medical and law colleges, will be governed by a single regulator.
- MPhil courses will now be terminated.
- Board exams will now be more application and knowledge-based.
- Both the public and private higher education institutes will be governed under the same norms.
- To promote and give more emphasis on the regional language/mother-tongue, the instruction medium up to class 5 will be in local/home languages.
- All entrance exams for higher education institutes and universities will be held together.
- School curriculum to focus more on core concepts.
- Vocational education will also be imparted from the 6th grade onwards.
- 10+2 study culture discontinue and new structure of 5+3+3+4 will be followed, subject to the respective age group of 3-8, 8-11, 11-14, and 14-18 years.
Everything About The New Education Policy In India In Detail
The major aim of introducing and implementing the NEP is to enhance the quality of education equally for all and move in the direction of strengthening India as a global superpower.
The NEP was drafted by a panel led by the former head of the Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO), Kasturirangan, and presented to Union Minister for Human Resources Development Ramesh Pokhriyal when he took office in 2019.
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Single Regulations For All Levels Of School Education:
NEP focuses on providing universal access to education at all levels from pre-school to higher education. This will include:
- Tracking the students and their learning levels.
- Bringing back the dropouts to the mainstream through innovative education centers.
- Infrastructure support.
- Introducing counselors and trained social workers to schools
- Facilitate multiple learning paths that involve formal and non-formal education modes.
- Grades 3, 5, and 8 will be provided with open learning and open public schools through NIOS.
- Equivalent secondary education programs in grades 10 and 12
- Introduction of vocational courses in the school curriculum.
The above aims will be accomplished with the help of adult literacy and life-enrichment programs.
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New Curriculum For Early Childhood Care And Education
NEP will be replacing the 10+2 curriculum structure with a 5+3+3+4 structure. The new system has proposed 12 years of school education with 3 years of pre-schooling/Anganwadi. 3-6 years of age is globally recognized as the crucial age for the mental development of the child.
Keeping this in mind, the new curriculum structure has been formulated, which will correspond to 3-8, 8-11, 11-1,4, and 14-18 years of age, respectively. The key points are:- National Framework for Early Childhood Care and Education (NCPFECCE) will be created by NCERT for children up to 8 years old.
- Strengthened educational systems like Anganwadis and Kindergartens will focus on Early Childhood Care and Education (ECCE).
- Anganwadi workers and kindergarten teachers will be trained in ECCE pedagogy and programs.
- Ministries of Human Resource Development, Health and Family Welfare (HFW), Women and Child Development (WCD), and Tribal Affairs will collectively administer the ECCE.
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Pivot On Base Literacy
According to the NEP, MHRD will set up a National Mission on Foundational Literacy and Numeracy. By 2025, States will prepare and implement a program to attain foundational literacy and numeracy for students till class 3 in all primary schools. Another step proposed in this direction is the formulation of a National Book Promotion Policy.
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Changes In School Curriculum And Pedagogy
The School curriculum and pedagogy will be reformed, keeping in mind the overall development of students. The new curriculum will include equipping the students with
- 21st Century key skills.
- Enhance essential learning, practical and critical thinking, and experiential thinking.
- Reduction in previous curriculum content.
- More flexibility in choosing the subjects.
- No distinction between science, commerce, and maths.
- Co-curricular activities and vocational activities, and academic streams will be regarded as the same.
- Vocational education will include internships and will be imparted from class 6th onwards.
- NCFSE 2020-21 (National Curricular Framework for School Education) will be created by NCERT.
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Promoting Regional/Local Language
NEP proposes promotion of regional languages by making them the medium of instruction till the 5th or 8th class. Sanskrit will be an optional third language subject at all levels of the school. Other than Sankrit, other languages will also be available as optional subjects. Secondary level education will include teaching of other foreign languages as well. ISL (Indian Sign Language) will be made standard across the country and teaching material for students with hearing impairments will be developed for national and state schools.
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Assessment Reforms
The NEP proposes regular and formative assessments, replacing the summative assessment. The new assessment system is more competency-based. This will enhance the student’s development and learning skills. The main aim is to increase the analytical, critical, and conceptual thinking of the student. All students will take the 3rd, 5th, and 8th-year exams, which will be taken by the competent authority. 10th and 12th classes will still appear for the board exams but the pattern will be restructured, aiming at the integrated development of the child. A new National Assessment Center, PARAKH (Performance, Assessment, Review and Analysis of Knowledge for Holistic Development) will be established as a standard-setting body.
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Equitable and Inclusive Education
The education policy will focus on promoting equality for all. Special attention will be given to the SEDG (Socially and Economically Disadvantaged) group. SEDG includes gender, geographical, cultural and social disabilities.This norm of the policy will work on
- Gender Inclusion Fund
- Disadvantaged regions will have special education zones.
- Disabled students will be allowed to attend regular schooling with the help of teachers specialized for disabled students.
- Training, accommodations, appropriate technology, etc, will be provided to disabled students taking up regular schooling.
- States/districts are advised to set up day-boarding schools – “Bal Bhavans” for participation in extra activities that will be career and play-related.
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Changes in The Process Of Teacher Recruitment
Teachers will now be recruited with more transparent processes, and promotions will be merit-based. The Common National Professional Standards (NPST) will be created by NCTE by 2022, in deliberation with NCERT, teachers and expert organizations, and SCERT at all levels and regions.
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Standard Setting And Accreditation Program
The new education policy, 2020, provides clear and distinct systems for university policy, regulation, operations, and formulation. States/UTs will create an Independent Public School Standards Authority (SSSA). A new body called the School Quality Assessment and Accreditation Framework (SQAAF) will be created by SCERT for public accountability and oversight. This will promote transparent public self-disclosure.
Changes Introduced In Higher Education
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50% Increase in GER
The NEP aims at increasing the current GER (Gross Enrolment Ratio) from 26.3% to 50 by 2035. According to the NEP, it is being speculated that 3.5 crore new seats will be added for higher education.
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Overall Multidisciplinary Education
The policy provides for a holistic, multidisciplinary, and broad-based undergraduate education with flexible study plans, more options in choosing the subjects, including and focusing more on vocational education, and more flexibility to enter and exit the course with authorized certification . Undergraduates will now have the option to choose the number of years as per their requirement, ranging from 1-4 years, with appropriate certification. For example, a certificate after 1 year, an advanced diploma after 2 years, a license after 3 years, and a research license after 4 years.
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Regulations
The Higher Education Commission of India (HECI) will be established as a single and comprehensive coordinating body for all higher education, except for medical and legal education. HECI will have four independent verticals:
- The National Council for the Regulation of Higher Education (NHERC) regulates.
- The General Council of Education (GEC) for standardization.
- The Council for Higher Education Grants (HEGC) for funding.
- The National Accreditation Council (NAC) for accreditation.
HECI will operate through faceless intervention through technology and will have the power to penalize higher education institutions that do not conform to norms and standards. -
Institutional Architecture
Defining a university will allow for the creation of a variety of institutions ranging from research-intensive universities to education-intensive universities and independent degree-granting colleges. University membership should be phased out in 15 years, and a progressive mechanism should be put in place to grant progressive autonomy to universities. Over time, each university is expected to become an independent degree-granting university or a college that constitutes a university.
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Teacher Training
NCTE will formulate a new comprehensive national educational framework for teacher training, NCFTE 2021, in consultation with NCERT. As per the policy of the new education system, by 2030, a teacher will require a minimum of a B.Ed degree of 4 years for teaching in any institution. Continued action will be taken against lower-quality Autonomous Teacher Training Institutions (TEIs).
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Open And Distance Learning
Open and distance learning will have a vital role in increasing the GER. Measures will be taken, such as online courses and digital repositories, research funding, improvement of student services, recognition of MOOCs on the basis of credits, etc., to ensure that it is keeping up with the standards of imparting the highest quality of classroom programs.
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Online education and digital education
A comprehensive set of recommendations is provided in NEP, for the promotion of online education in the wake of the recent outbreak of pandemics to ensure the availability of quality alternative education modes anytime and anywhere.
MHRD will create a special unit focusing only on the building of digital content and infrastructure to ensure the futuristic goal of e-education is met for higher education and schools. -
Vocational Education
All types of occupational education and training will be a fundamental part of the higher education system, to strengthen the base of the students for different professions. An internship of 10 days in a year will also be provided to the students in local vocations according to the area or region. Autonomous technical universities, universities of health sciences, legal and agricultural universities, etc. they aim to become multidisciplinary institutions.
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Financial Education
The NEP aims to increase the current GDP by 6% higher at the earliest. And for this, both the state and central government will work together and promote the increase of public investment in the education sector.
These were all the changes in detail that were proposed and introduced in the New Education Policy 2020.
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