Skill education, AI courses and digital platforms form key pillars of the government’s education strategy.
The Centre has stepped up efforts to promote skillbased and experiential learning across schools and higher education institutions in accordance with the National Education Policy (NEP) 2020, while simultaneously expanding digital education infrastructure to reduce the gap between urban and rural learning, the Ministry of Education informed Parliament. In a written reply in the Rajya Sabha, Minister of State for Education Dr. Sukanta Majumdar said that skill education has been incorporated into the Centrally Sponsored Samagra Shiksha scheme for students from Classes VI to XII, with a focus on practical learning and industryoriented skills. For students in Classes VI to VIII, the programme includes pre-vocational education through initiatives such as 10 bagless days, off-textbook experiential learning activities and Kaushal Bodh, an activity-based textbook series developed by NCERT. Students in Classes IX to XII can pursue skill courses aligned with the National Skills Qualifications Framework (NSQF), with vocational education offered as an additional subject at the secondary level and as an elective at the senior secondary stage. At the higher education level, the government is encouraging skill development through Community Colleges, Bachelor of Vocation (B.Voc.) programmes, and Deen Dayal Upadhyay Centres for Knowledge Acquisition and Upgradation of Skilled Human Abilities and Livelihood.
The University Grants Commission (UGC) and the All India Council for Technical Education (AICTE) have also introduced the Apprenticeship Embedded Degree Programme (AEDP) 2025, which combines classroom education with structured apprenticeships and industry exposure under the National Apprenticeship Training Scheme (NATS). The minister added that higher education institutions are increasingly offering courses in emerging technologies such as artificial intelligence, data science, cyber security, quantum technology, space technology, sustainable energy, the Internet of Things (IoT), robotics and semiconductors, helping students build employability and entrepreneurial skills. Emphasising the government’s digital education push, Majumdar said that PM eVidya and DIKSHA are being implemented under Samagra Shiksha to improve access to quality education, particularly for students in rural, remote and tribal regions. Launched on May 17, 2020, under the Atma Nirbhar Bharat Abhiyaan, PM eVidya integrates online, digital and broadcast modes of learning. The initiative currently operates through 200 Directto-Home (DTH) television channels and 400 radio channels, offering supplementary educational content in multiple Indian languages for students from Classes I to XII.
The minister informed the House that DIKSHA, India’s “One Nation, One Digital Platform” for school education, now hosts more than 3.67 lakh digital learning resources created by states, Union Territories and autonomous bodies in regional and local languages. According to the ministry, the platform has facilitated over 579.41 crore learning sessions for 2.29 crore users, including students, teachers and other stakeholders. DIKSHA also provides access to more than 836 virtual laboratories, allowing learners to perform simulationbased experiments, while its offline feature enables users to download educational content for uninterrupted learning without internet access. To strengthen digital connectivity in rural schools, the government announced in the Union Budget 2025 that broadband services would be extended to all government secondary schools in rural areas through BSNL’s BharatNet project.
