Lok Sabha Question No. 360 (STARRED), answered on 2025-08-18
Subject: Learning Programs in Rural Areas
Ministry: EDUCATION
Asked by: Smt. Shambhavi, Shri Naresh Ganpat Mhaske

## GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF EDUCATION DEPARTMENT OF HIGHER EDUCATION

LOK SABHA STARRED QUESTION NO. 360 ANSWERED ON 18/08/2025

## Learning Programs in Rural Areas

*360  SMT. SHAMBHAVI: SHRI NARESH GANPAT MHASKE:

Will the Minister of EDUCATION be pleased to state:

- (a) the  details  of  funds  allocated  and  utilized  under  the  key  initiatives  and  policies implemented  by  the  Government  to  enhance  educational  access  and  learning opportunities in rural areas of the country; (b) the impact of digital learning programs, rural education infrastructure development and Government schemes on improving education outcomes in villages; (c) the  measures taken/proposed to be taken by the Government to bridge the urbanrural education divide; and
- (d) whether  the  Government  has  any  plans  to  further  strengthen  rural  education  and ensure inclusive and equitable learning opportunities for all, if so, the details thereof and if not, the reasons therefor?

## ANSWER

## MINISTER OF EDUCATION (SHRI DHARMENDRA PRADHAN)

(a) to (d): A Statement is laid on the table of the House.

*****

## STATEMENT REFERRED TO IN REPLY TO PARTS (A) to (D) IN RESPECT OF LOK  SABHA  STARRED  QUESTION  NO.  360  ANSWERED  ON  18.08.2025 REGARDING 'LEARNING PROGRAMS IN RURAL AREAS' ASKED BY SMT. SHAMBHAVI & SHRI NARESH GANPAT MHASKE, HON'BLE MEMBERS OF PARLIAMENT

(a)  to  (d)    The  Government  of  India  has  framed  and  approved  the  National  Education Policy  (NEP)  2020  to  transform  the  education  landscape  into  a  multidisciplinary, inclusive,  and  learner-centric  ecosystem.  It  accords  high  priority  to  enhancing  equity, quality and access to education for everyone. It emphasises on augmentation of physical infrastructure, digital infrastructure & connectivity, integration of ICT based tools, and improving  inclusion  &  equity  as  critical  enablers  for  expanding  access  to  education, particularly in rural regions. The details of various initiatives aimed at these key enablers are as follows:

NEP 2020 accords priority to strengthen the physical infrastructure, particularly in rural and  remote  areas,  through  the  construction  of  new  buildings,  addition  of  classrooms, upgrading  of  facilities,  provision  of  barrier-free  access  for  children  with  special  needs, and improved sanitation and hygiene. Initiatives such as Samagra Shiksha, PM-SHRI, PM-USHA,  Institutions  of  Eminence,  establishment  of  new  central  higher  education institutions  and  MERITE  scheme are  contributing  to  building  safe  and  inclusive infrastructure and learning environments, thereby enhancing access, enrolment, retention, and overall educational outcomes. The details of the initiatives are as follows:

-  Samagra Shiksha: Samagra Shiksha is a Centrally Sponsored Scheme which aims  to  ensure  that  all  children,  from  pre-school  to  class  12,  have  access  to quality education. Under the scheme financial assistance is provided to the States and  UTs  for    opening/strengthening  of  schools  till  senior  secondary  level, construction of school buildings & additional classrooms, development/strengthening  of  school  infrastructure  in  northern  border  areas under  Vibrant  Village  Programme,  setting  up  of  Netaji  Subhash  Chandra  Bose Avasiya  Vidyalayas,  construction  of  hostels  for  PVTGs  under  PM-JANMAN, construction of hostels under Dharti Aaba Janjatiya Gram Utkarsh Abhiyan for unsaturated ST population etc. In the last financial year (2024-25) more than Rs 34,000 crore has been released as the central share under this scheme.
-  PM-SHRI: Pradhan Mantri Schools for Rising India (PM-SHRI) is a Centrally Sponsored Scheme, in which existing schools managed by Central Government/State/UT Government/local bodies are strengthened and upgraded. A total of 13,076 PM SHRI schools have been selected from 33 States/UTs along with Kendriya Vidyalaya (KVS) and Navodaya Vidyalaya (NVS) through transparent challenge process out of which 9,373 PM SHRI schools are in rural areas  of  the  country.  In  the  last  financial  year  (2024-25)  more  than  Rs  3500 crore were released as the central share under this scheme.
-  PM-USHA: Pradhan  Mantri  Uchchatar  Shiksha  Abhiyan  (PM-USHA)  is  a Centrally Sponsored  Scheme  aimed  at funding specific State  government universities  and  colleges,  so  as  to  improve  their  infrastructure  and  quality  by ensuring their conformity to prescribed norms and standards. Under PM-USHA, priority  is  given  to  districts  based  on  Gross  Enrollment  Ratio,  Aspirational/ Border areas, gender parity and the proportion of disadvantaged categories such as  Scheduled  Castes,  Scheduled  Tribes,  and  Other  Backward  Classes.  The government has launched its third phase for the period 2023-24 to 2025-26 with an outlay of Rs. 12926.10 crore to cater to the needs of educationally underserved and  rural  areas.  Since  the  inception  of  the  scheme,  an  amount  of  Rs.7,799.69 crore has been released to various States/UTs under different components of the scheme till date.
-  Institution  of  Eminence  (IoE): Ministry  of  Education  launched  the  World Class Institutions scheme to grant the status of Institution of Eminence (IoE) to 10 higher educational institutions each from the public and private category and enable them to emerge as world class teaching and research institutions. Twelve institutions  have  been  notified  as  IoE  so  far.  These  include  08  public  category institutions,  namely  -  IIT  Bombay,  IIT  Delhi,  IIT  Madras,  IIT  Kharagpur,  IISc Bangalore, BHU Varanasi, University of Hyderabad, and University of Delhi and 04  private  category  institutions  namely  -  BITS  Pilani,  Manipal  Academy  of Higher  Education,  O.P.  Jindal  Global  University  and  Shiv  Nadar  University, Greater Noida. Only public institutions are provided funds under the scheme. An amount  of  Rs  6198.99  Crore  (approximately)  has  been  sanctioned  for  the  08 public institutions since the inception of the scheme.
-  Expansion of Central Higher Educational Institutions (CHEIs): Government of India has made concerted efforts to improve access and quality  of  education  in  the  country.  Since  2014,  augmentation  of  Higher Education  ecosystem  has  been  undertaken  by  establishment  of  new  Central Higher  Educational  Institutions  (CHEIs)  in  the  fields  of  Technical  Education, Management,  Science  Education  &  Research,  Information  Technology,  and Humanities.  CHEIs  are  envisaged  to  function  as  pace  setter  institutions  to provide  academic leadership to  other  institutions  in  the  region.  Since  2014,  16 Indian  Institutes  of  Information  Technology  (IIITs),  8  Central  Universities (CUs), 8 Indian Institute of Management (IIMs), 7 Indian Institute of Technology (IITs),  2  Indian  Institute  of  Science  Education  and  Research  (IISERs)  and  a National Institute of Technology (NIT) have been established.
-  MERITE: The  'Multidisciplinary  Education  and  Research  Improvement  in Technical Education' (MERITE) Scheme has been approved for implementation in  275  technical  institutions  comprising  175  engineering  institutions  and  100 polytechnics. The objective of the scheme is to improve the quality, equity and governance  in  technical  education  covering  all  States/UTs  by  implementing interventions aligned with the National Educational Policy-2020 (NEP-2020). It is a 'Central Sector Scheme' with total financial implication of Rs.4200 crore for a period from 2025-26 to 2029-30.

The NEP 2020 also emphasises on digital infrastructure, connectivity and integration of ICT-based  tools  to  expand  access  to  quality  education.  Under Samagra  Shiksha ,  ICT laboratories, smart classrooms, and digital boards are being established in rural schools. The National  Knowledge  Network  (NKN) initiative  provides  high  speed  internet  to educational  institutions.  The  Union  Budget  2025  includes  a  provision  under  the BharatNet project to extend broadband connectivity to government secondary schools in rural  areas  in  a  phased  manner.  Initiatives  such  as PM eVIDYA, SWAYAM, SWAYAM Prabha,  One  Nation  One  Subscription  (ONOS),  National  Digital  Library  of  India (NDLI),  Rashtriya  e-Pustakalaya provide  multi-lingual  e-content  for  students  and teachers, promoting blended and remote learning. The details are as follows:

-  NKN Connectivity: The National Knowledge Network (NKN), initiated by the Ministry  of  Electronics  and  Information  Technology  (MeitY),  is  a  secure  and
- high-speed  digital  backbone  that  empowers  research,  educational  institutions and  government  organizations  across  India  to  share  data  and  resources.  The project has been extended till 31st March 2026 with a financial outlay of Rs. 7188 crores.  Under  the  connectivity  component  of  National  Mission  on  Education through  Information  and  Communication  Technology  (NMEICT)  Scheme  of Ministry  of  Education  (MoE),  funds  are  released  to  Bharat  Sanchar  Nigam Limited (BSNL) and Mahanagar Telephone Nigam Limited (MTNL) to provide 1 Gbps  bandwidth  NKN  connectivity  to  various  Higher  Education  Institution across India. So far more than 1800 institutions have been provided connectivity under the project including from funds under NMEICT.
-  Samagra Shiksha :  Under the scheme financial assistance is also provided for establishing ICT Labs and Smart Classrooms in schools. The nonrecurring/recurring  grant  under  'ICT  and  Digital  Initiatives'  is  available  to  the States  and  UTs.  As  per  PRABANDH  portal,  till  date  1,76,669  ICT  Labs  and 1,75,936  Smart  Classrooms  have  been  sanctioned  to  State/UT  Governments under this element of Samagra Shiksha.
-  PM  eVIDYA: The  Government  of  India  has  launched  PM  eVIDYA  as  a comprehensive  initiative  to  unify  all  efforts  related  to  digital/online/on-air education to  enable multi-mode access to school education across the country. Under the program 200 PM eVidya DTH TV Channels and 400 Radio channels to  enable  all  States/UTs  to  provide  supplementary  education  in  various  Indian languages including for classes 1-12.
-  DIKSHA: Digital  Infrastructure  for  Knowledge  Sharing  (DIKSHA)  is  the Nation's  One  Nation,  One  Digital  platform  for  providing  quality  e-content  for school  education  in  States/UTs  along  with  QR  coded  Energised  Textbooks (ETBs)  for  all  grades.  As  a  participant  in  DIKSHA,  States/UTs/ABs  have generated  and  contributed  over  3.69  lakh  content  in  local/regional  languages. Overall,  564.05  crore  learning  sessions  have  been  completed  on  DIKSHA  by students, teachers and other stakeholders. The stakeholders have access to more than 300 Virtual Labs on DIKSHA. DIKSHA is equipped with assistive features like Indian Sign Language (ISL) videos, audio contents which ensures accessibility for learners with special needs and supports students, teachers, and parents nationwide.
-  SWAYAM: Ministry of Education  in collaboration with IIT Madras  has launched Study Webs of Active-Learning for Young Aspiring Minds (SWAYAM) platform.  The  platform  hosts  content  curated  by  premier  Institutions  and  is available  free  of  cost  with  the  approach  of  'Anyone,  Anywhere,  Anytime' Learning. As on date, more than 16000 courses have been delivered. SWAYAM courses have witnessed cumulative enrolments of more than 5.50 crores since its inception.
-  SWAYAM  Prabha: SWAYAM  Prabha  is  an  initiative  of  the  Government  of India  that  provides  high-quality  educational  content  through  a  network  of  48 DTH television channels, aimed at ensuring uninterrupted learning for students across  the  country,  particularly  those  in  remote  and  rural  areas.  As  on  date, educational video lectures with a total time more than 92,000 hours is on the web platform.
-  NDLI: National  Digital  Library  of  India  (NDLI)  was  launched  in  collaboration with  Indian  Institute  of  Technology,  Kharagpur  (IIT-KGP). NDLI  provides  free access to a vast online repository of educational resources, including textbooks, research papers, journals, archived newspapers and multimedia content, etc to all learners across the nation. The platform has more than 90 lakh registered users.
-  Rashtriya e-Pustakalaya: The Rashtriya e-Pustakalaya provides quality books to  children  and  adolescents,  ensuring  accessibility  across  diverse  geographies, languages,  genres,  and  educational  levels.  The  platform  offers  content  in  23 languages  and  is  supported  by  over  50  publishers,  making  a  wide  range  of resources  available  to  users.  The  platform  has  more  than  2300  books  and  2.5 lakh registered users who have engaged in more than 13 lakh reading sessions.
-  Centres  of  Excellence  in  AI  (AI-CoE) .  The  Budget  2025-26  has  also provisioned for setting up of an AI-CoE in field of Education with an outlay of Rs. 500 crores.

Further, NEP 2020 promotes equitable access to quality education for socioeconomically disadvantaged groups (SEDGs), including girls, children with special needs, and learners from rural, tribal, and marginalised communities. Government's measures to  fulfil  these  aims  include  providing  nutrition,  scholarships,  and  instruction  in  the mother-tongue. Initiatives such as PM-Poshan, PM-Vidyalaxmi, PM-USP, and National Means-cum-Merit  Scholarship  Scheme  (NMMSS) provide nutrition and financial assistance  to  students  to  access  education  and  aim  to  ensure  retention. Unnat Bharat Abhiyan (UBA)

connects  Higher  Education  Institutions  (HEIs)  with  rural  communities  to  provide technology-based solutions to societal problems. The details are as follows:

-  PM  -  POSHAN: Pradhan  Mantri  Poshan  Shakti  Nirman  (PM  POSHAN) Scheme  is  one  of  the  foremost  rights-based  Centrally  Sponsored  Scheme implemented  in  partnership  with  the  States  and  UTs  for  providing  one  hot cooked and nutritious meal to all children studying in Bal Vatika and classes I to VIII of Government and Government-aided schools. The aim of the scheme is to provide nutrition to students and ensure their retention in the education system. The Scheme benefits more than 11 crore children in more than 10.35 lakh schools in  all  the  States/  UTs.  For  FY  2025-26,  budget  allocation  for  the  PM  Poshan Scheme is Rs. 12,500 crore by Government of India and the State/ UT share as per the sharing pattern is around Rs. 7,500 crore.
-  NMMSS: National Means-cum-Merit Scholarship Scheme (NMMSS) has been implemented  to  award  scholarships  to  meritorious  students  of  economically weaker  sections  to  encourage  them  to  continue  their  education  at  secondary stage. One lakh fresh scholarships are awarded to selected students of class IX every year and their continuation/renewal in classes X to XII for study in State Government, Government-aided and  Local body schools under the scheme. In the last financial year (2024-25) more than Rs 300 crore were released for more than 2.70 lakh scholarships.
-  PM Vidyalaxmi: It  is  a  central  sector  scheme that has been launched on 6th November 2024. The main objective of the scheme is to ensure that no student is denied the opportunity to pursue higher education due to financial constraints. Under the scheme, collateral-free and guarantor-free education loan is provided to all the students, including students from minority communities who get meritbased admission in top Quality Higher Education Institutions (QHEIs). Further, for students with annual family income up to ₹ 8 lakh, the scheme provides 3% interest subvention on education loans up to ₹ 10 lakhs.
-  PM USP-CSIS: Ministry of Education is also implementing the Pradhan Mantri Uchchatar Shiksha Protsahan Central Sector Interest Subsidy Scheme (PM USPCSIS). Under this Scheme, full interest subvention is provided to all students who
- are  pursuing  technical/professional  courses  from  approved  NAAC  accredited HEIs/NBA accredited  courses  and  whose  annual  family  income  is  up  to  ₹  4.5 lakhs  for  loans  up  to  Rs.  10  lakhs,  during  the  moratorium  period.  There  is  no upper limit on number of student beneficiaries for this Scheme.
-  PM-USP  CGFSEL: Under the Pradhan Mantri Uchchatar Shiksha Protsahan Credit Guarantee Fund Scheme for Education Loans (PM-USP CGFSEL) of the Central Government, credit guarantee is provided for education loans sanctioned up  to  ₹  7.5  lakhs.  The  guarantee  cover  is  up  to  75%  of  outstanding  default. Further, under the model education loan scheme of the Indian Banks' Association,  the  repayment  period  for  education  loan  is  up  to  15  years  after moratorium period (course year plus one year).
-  UBA : Ministry of Education launched Unnat Bharat Abhiyan (UBA) in September 2014. It connects Higher Education Institutions (HEIs) in the country with the villages and local communities to identify challenges faced by the rural communities  and  to  provide  technology-based  solutions  to  them.  As  on  date, there  are  4335  HEIs  called  Participating  Institutions  (PIs)  covering  20534 village. So far, 543 technology-based solutions have been implemented covering different  subjects  of  sustainable  agriculture,  water  resource  management,  and rural energy system etc.
-  Bharatiya Bhasha Pustak Scheme: The Union Budget of 2025-26, makes a provision for Bharitya Bhasha Pustak Scheme wherein the textbooks and study materials  for  the  subjects  being  offered  for  schools  and  higher  education  are aimed to be made available in 22 Indian languages in digital form.

The  concerted  efforts  by  the  Government  of  India  to  improve  access  to  education  has resulted  in  significant  gains  across  the  education  ecosystem.  As  per  UDISE+  report, Electricity availability has jumped from 83.4% to 91.8% of schools in the period 2019-20 to  2023-24.  Library  facilities  in  schools  expanded  from  76.4%  to  89%;  access  to computers improved from 38.5% to 57.2% of schools; and internet facilities rose from 22.3%  to  53.9%  during  the  same  period.  As  per  UDISE+  2023-24  report,  4,76,669 schools have functional Desktops/PCs; 2,56,392 schools have functional laptops/notebooks;  2,75,857  schools  have  functional  tablets  and  3,59,457  schoolshave functional  Smart  Classrooms  used  for  teaching  with  Digital  Boards/  Smart  Boards/ Virtual  Classrooms/  Smart  TVs;  and  7,92,992  Schools  have  internet  facilities  across India.

Similarly,  India ' s  higher  education  system  has  witnessed  improvement  in  access, inclusivity, and equity. As per AISHE report, enrolment has increased by 26.5% i.e. from 3.42 Cr in 2014-15 to 4.33 crore in 2021-22. The Gross Enrolment Ratio (GER) in higher education has improved from 23.7% (2014-15) to 28.4% (2021-22), with female GER at 28.5. At national level, the Gender Parity Index (GPI), reached 1.01 in 2021-22, indicating that  female  GER  has  surpassed  male  GER.  This  reflects  the  success  of  broad-based gender-inclusive policies.