The Education Ministry has notified the National Council of Educational Research and Training as a deemed-to-be university, enabling it to offer academic programmes and confer degrees — a significant structural shift in India’s education landscape.NCERT will now be able to offer undergraduate, postgraduate, doctoral and research programmes, and will function under the norms and regulatory framework of the University Grants Commission.Six of its constituent institutions will come under this framework, including the Regional Institutes of Education in Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Odisha and Karnataka; the North East Regional Institute of Education in Meghalaya; and the Pandit Sunderlal Sharma Central Institute of Vocational Education in Madhya Pradesh.According to the notification, NCERT can launch new academic programmes, including off-campus and offshore centres, in line with UGC guidelines. It has also been directed to expand research, doctoral and innovative academic offerings in alignment with the National Education Policy 2020.NCERT had applied for deemed university status under a “distinct category” in September 2022. Following recommendations by the UGC, the Education Ministry issued a Letter of Intent in August 2023, asking the institution to strengthen its research ecosystem, comply with regulatory norms and initiate steps toward launching doctoral and innovative programmes within three years.The institution submitted its compliance report in November 2025, which was subsequently accepted by a UGC expert committee in January 2026.The ministry has clarified that NCERT will not engage in commercial or profit-making activities.