How the Department of School Education and Literacy Shapes India’s Education System

India’s school education system is one of the largest in the world, covering hundreds of millions of children across urban centres and remote villages alike. Behind this vast network sits a single nodal authority – the Department of School Education and Literacy (DoSEL) – that sets the policy direction, funds key programmes, and works through a web of boards, councils, and autonomous bodies to keep the system moving. Understanding how DoSEL is structured, what it governs, and what it is trying to achieve helps explain why school education in India looks the way it does – and where it is headed.

What is the Department of School Education and Literacy? 🔗

DoSEL functions under the Ministry of Education (MoE), Government of India. The Ministry of Education is divided into two departments: the Department of School Education and Literacy, which handles primary, secondary, and higher secondary education, adult education, and literacy; and the Department of Higher Education, which manages university-level and technical education. In simple terms, everything from a child’s first day in pre-primary school to their Class 12 board examination falls within the ambit of DoSEL.

DoSEL operates through several autonomous and statutory bodies – including CBSE, Kendriya Vidyalaya Sangathan (KVS), Jawahar Navodaya Vidyalayas (JNV), NIOS, NCERT, and NCTE – and implements its goals through centrally sponsored schemes. Its stated mission is straightforward: universal access to quality education as the foundation for an equitable and just society.

The school education landscape: elementary to secondary 🔗

School education in India is typically divided into three broad stages – elementary (Classes 1-8), secondary (Classes 9-10), and senior secondary (Classes 11-12). The Right to Education (RTE) Act, 2009 made free and compulsory education a legal right for all children between the ages of 6 and 14, effectively covering the elementary stage. This legislative backing was a turning point – it shifted education from a privilege to an enforceable entitlement.

At the elementary level, DoSEL’s focus has historically been on getting children into school and keeping them there – improving enrolment, reducing dropout rates, and ensuring basic infrastructure. At the secondary and senior secondary levels, the emphasis shifts to quality, curriculum relevance, and preparing students for higher education or the workforce. The National Education Policy (NEP) 2020 restructured this progression into a new 5+3+3+4 pedagogical framework, replacing the older 10+2 model, with a greater emphasis on foundational learning and skill development across all stages.

Governing bodies: who oversees school education? 🔗

No single board governs every school in India. Instead, the system runs through a layered structure of national and state-level boards, each serving a distinct function.

Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) 🔗

CBSE is the most widely recognised national board, controlled and managed by the Government of India. It was established in 1929 and reconstituted in 1962 to extend its reach across the country. Today, it affiliates more than 27,000 schools across India and 240 schools in 28 countries abroad. All CBSE-affiliated schools follow the NCERT curriculum, especially for Classes 9 to 12. CBSE conducts the Class 10 and Class 12 board examinations every year, and its curriculum is closely aligned with national entrance tests like JEE and NEET, making it the go-to choice for families focused on engineering and medical careers.

Council for the Indian School Certificate Examinations (CISCE) and ICSE 🔗

The Council for the Indian School Certificate Examinations (CISCE) is a private, national-level board established in 1958. It administers the Indian Certificate of Secondary Education (ICSE) for Class 10 and the Indian School Certificate (ISC) for Class 12. CISCE places a strong emphasis on in-depth learning, critical thinking, and English language proficiency, making it popular with families who value holistic academic development and are considering higher education abroad. More than 2,300 schools in India and overseas are affiliated with CISCE.

State boards 🔗

Every state in India has its own government-run education board, which decides the curriculum, examination pattern, and certification for schools within that state. State boards design their syllabi to reflect regional languages, local contexts, and cultural priorities. CBSE and state boards together maintain academic uniformity within their respective jurisdictions, while state boards specifically deliver education under state-level governance and align schooling with regional administrative systems. The majority of Indian students – particularly in rural and semi-urban areas – study under state board systems, which are generally more affordable and locally accessible.

National Institute of Open Schooling (NIOS) 🔗

NIOS is a government board established under the Ministry of Education in 1989. It serves students who cannot attend regular schools – including working adolescents, children with disabilities, students with chronic health conditions, and adult learners seeking a second chance at formal education. NIOS conducts intermediate and senior secondary examinations similar to CBSE, and also offers collegiate programmes beyond high school. NIOS is central to DoSEL’s inclusion agenda and plays a critical role in supporting adult literacy efforts.

Major focus areas of DoSEL 🔗

Elementary education 🔗

Universalising elementary education has been the cornerstone of India’s education policy for decades. The constitutional directive to provide free and compulsory education up to age 14 gained legal force through the RTE Act. DoSEL’s programmes ensure that children from disadvantaged communities – including girls, tribal populations, and children with special needs – are not only enrolled but supported through incentives like free textbooks, uniforms, and transport allowances.

In 2021, DoSEL launched the NIPUN Bharat mission – a targeted programme to ensure that all children achieve foundational literacy and numeracy skills by the end of Grade 3. This was a direct response to learning outcome data showing that millions of children were passing through elementary school without basic reading and arithmetic competence.

Secondary education 🔗

At the secondary level, DoSEL focuses on expanding access while improving quality. Schemes under its umbrella support the construction of new secondary schools, upgrading existing schools to senior secondary level, and setting up residential schools – particularly for girls in underserved areas. The Kasturba Gandhi Balika Vidyalayas (KGBVs), residential schools for girls from marginalised communities, are a key intervention at this stage.

Adult education and literacy 🔗

Adult literacy has been a persistent challenge in India. DoSEL’s ULLAS – Understanding of Lifelong Learning for All in Society (also called the Nav Bharat Saaksharta Karyakram) – is the current central scheme for adult education. ULLAS targets all non-literate individuals aged 15 and above who missed out on formal schooling. It is implemented through volunteerism, with students, teachers, and community members serving as literacy volunteers. The programme covers five components: foundational literacy and numeracy, critical life skills, basic education, vocational skills, and continuing education. As of recent reports, over two crore learners and 39 lakh volunteer teachers have registered under ULLAS, with nearly 89 lakh learners certified as literate.

Key government initiatives shaping school education 🔗

Samagra Shiksha 🔗

Samagra Shiksha, launched in 2018, is the primary umbrella scheme for school education in India. It merged three earlier centrally sponsored schemes – Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan (SSA), Rashtriya Madhyamik Shiksha Abhiyan (RMSA), and Teacher Education (TE) – into a single integrated framework. The key shift Samagra Shiksha introduced was treating school education as a seamless continuum from pre-primary to Class 12, rather than managing each stage separately. The scheme currently covers 11.68 lakh schools, approximately 15.62 crore students, and 57.67 lakh teachers in government and aided schools. It provides financial assistance to states and Union Territories for school construction, infrastructure upgrades, digital learning, inclusive education, and teacher training.

PM POSHAN (formerly Mid-Day Meal Scheme) 🔗

The Pradhan Mantri Poshan Shakti Nirman (PM POSHAN) scheme – formerly known as the Mid-Day Meal Scheme – is one of the world’s largest school feeding programmes. Its primary objectives are to address classroom hunger and improve the nutritional status of children in government and government-aided schools, while also encouraging children from disadvantaged backgrounds to attend school regularly. By linking nutrition to school attendance, PM POSHAN serves a dual purpose: keeping children healthy and reducing dropout rates.

PM SHRI schools 🔗

The PM Schools for Rising India (PM SHRI) scheme aims to develop more than 14,500 exemplary schools that serve as model institutions for implementing NEP 2020. With an overall budget of Rs. 27,360 crore spanning five years from 2022 to 2027, PM SHRI schools focus on cognitive development, 21st-century skills, and quality education. So far, 12,084 schools across 32 states and Union Territories have been selected under the scheme.

National Means-cum-Merit Scholarship Scheme (NMMSS) 🔗

To prevent economically weaker students from dropping out after Class 8, the National Means-cum-Merit Scholarship Scheme (NMMSS) provides annual scholarships of ₹12,000. In 2023-24, approximately 2,50,089 students received this support, helping them continue into secondary education.

NEP 2020 and the road ahead 🔗

All of DoSEL’s current initiatives are anchored in the National Education Policy 2020, which sets the long-term vision for school education in India. NEP 2020 aims for universalisation of education from pre-school to senior secondary level, with a target of 100% Gross Enrolment Ratio by 2030. It emphasises foundational learning, reduced curricular load, multilingual instruction, and the integration of vocational education from the middle school stage. NEP 2020 rests on five guiding pillars: Access, Equity, Quality, Affordability, and Accountability – a framework that directly informs how DoSEL designs and evaluates its programmes.

Why DoSEL’s role matters 🔗

India’s education challenges are not uniform. A child in a tribal district in Jharkhand faces very different barriers to learning than one in an urban school in Bengaluru. DoSEL’s structure – combining national-level policy with state-level implementation, using both regulatory bodies like CBSE and support bodies like NIOS – is designed to address this diversity. By operating through autonomous bodies, centrally sponsored schemes, and partnerships with state governments, DoSEL functions less like a single administrator and more like an ecosystem manager, setting standards while allowing flexibility in delivery.

The department’s dual mandate – school education and literacy – reflects a clear understanding that formal schooling alone cannot address India’s education deficit. Adult literacy programmes like ULLAS, combined with schemes that support school infrastructure, nutrition, scholarships, and teacher training, form an interlocking system. When each part works, the cumulative effect on learning outcomes, gender parity, and social mobility is significant.

What do you think? With India targeting a 100% Gross Enrolment Ratio by 2030, do you think the current mix of governing boards – CBSE, state boards, and NIOS – is well-structured enough to reach every child equitably? And given the scale of adult illiteracy in India, should programmes like ULLAS receive greater investment and visibility than they currently do?

References

1. https://dsel.education.gov.in/en/about-us
2. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ministry_of_Education_(India)
3. https://dsel.education.gov.in/en/dsel
4. https://www.india.gov.in/information-initiatives-department-school-education-and-literacy
5. https://www.education.gov.in/en/school-education
6. https://cbse.gov.in
7. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Central_Board_of_Secondary_Education
8. https://cisce.org
9. https://leverageedu.com/blog/education-boards-in-india/
10. https://www.cobse.org.in/recognized-educational-boards-list/
11. https://anandi.org/blog/education-boards-in-india
12. https://nios.ac.in
13. https://aachiglobalschool.com/blogs/8-different-types-of-education-boards-in-india-2024-cbse-caie-more/
14. https://nipunbharat.education.gov.in/
15. https://organiser.org/2024/11/11/264676/bharat/transforming-indias-education-system-a-pathway-to-global-competitiveness-and-inclusivity/
16. https://educationforallinindia.com/achievements-of-education-schemes-2024-25-ministry-of-education/
17. https://samagra.education.gov.in
18. https://samagra.education.gov.in/docs/samagra_shiksha.pdf
19. https://dsel.education.gov.in/sites/default/files/update/PIB2091737.pdf
20. https://www.pib.gov.in/Pressreleaseshare.aspx?PRID=2091737
21. https://www.education.gov.in/sites/upload_files/mhrd/files/NEP_Final_English_0.pdf
22. https://www.drishtiias.com/india-year-book-2024/social-welfare/chapter-14-education