Ignou's Digital Revolution: Transforming Distance Education for Viksit Bharat
As India's higher education landscape evolves under the Viksit Bharat Shiksha Adhishthan framework, with an ambitious target of achieving a 50% gross enrolment ratio (GER) by 2035, the Indira Gandhi National Open University (Ignou) has emerged as a critical player in this national transformation. The country's largest university has identified open and distance learning (ODL) as absolutely indispensable to meeting the massive scale required for India's educational expansion.
Comprehensive Digital Overhaul Anchored in Single-App Model
Ignou is currently preparing for an end-to-end digital transformation that will fundamentally reshape how education is delivered to millions of students across the nation. At the heart of this transformation lies a "one app for everything" model designed to create a seamless digital ecosystem. This integrated approach will cover every aspect of the student journey—from admissions and learning support to assignments, projects, and assessments.
Vice-chancellor Uma Kanjilal, the first woman to lead Ignou, emphasized that regulatory consolidation under the new framework could significantly ease long-standing operational complexities faced by open universities. "Currently, for different programmes, institutions must navigate multiple regulatory bodies—AICTE for some, UGC for others, NCTE for yet others," she explained. "Once all these functions come under one unified umbrella, administrative life becomes substantially easier."
Automation as the Core Solution to Examination Challenges
The examination and evaluation system represents what Kanjilal described as the university's most significant challenge. "The answer is only one word—automation," she stated unequivocally, highlighting persistent issues with delays, lack of tracking mechanisms, and even the physical loss of answer scripts.
To address these systemic problems, Ignou has already introduced spot evaluation in the current academic session and is planning a comprehensive shift to on-screen evaluation starting from the June examination cycle. Regional centres across the country are expected to evolve into larger evaluation hubs, with automation enabling complete monitoring and control throughout the assessment process. "Our internal target is to eliminate grievance delays linked to evaluation entirely," Kanjilal affirmed.
Multilingual Expansion Beyond Mere Translation
Language accessibility forms another crucial pillar of Ignou's strategic roadmap. The university is undertaking a sweeping mother-tongue expansion that aims to offer teaching, examinations, and certification in 22 Indian languages. Under a memorandum of understanding with the Odisha government, course materials are already being translated into Odia, with approximately 400 courses targeted in the initial phase.
Kanjilal emphasized that this initiative goes far beyond simple translation. "It's a complete, integrated process. Students can take examinations in Odia, evaluation will be conducted by Odia-speaking counsellors, and even the final certificates will be issued in the regional language," she detailed. The university plans to cover at least 12 Indian languages within two years and all 22 scheduled languages within three to four years.
Enhanced Student Services and Skills Integration
On the student services front, Ignou is developing an online assignment and project management system that will allow students to upload their work digitally while enabling centralized monitoring of evaluation processes. This system is expected to be rolled out shortly as part of the broader digital ecosystem.
Simultaneously, the university has secured access to 50 television channels to conduct centrally monitored counselling sessions and live classes. This innovative approach supplements online delivery while addressing last-mile connectivity gaps that persist in many parts of the country.
Ignou is also restructuring its academic programmes to embed skills and employability components more deeply, supported by a strategic tie-up with the Ministry of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship. With approximately 39 lakh students currently enrolled and roughly 15 lakh new admissions each year, Kanjilal stressed that scaling up effectively depends fundamentally on system strength. "If we successfully automate processes, transition to digital platforms, and integrate market-relevant skills, student numbers will naturally increase," she projected.
Critical Role in National Education Goals
The vice-chancellor underscored that achieving India's GER expansion targets at the national level would be impossible through physical campuses alone. "If open and distance learning, along with online education, are not properly adopted and scaled, the ambitious numbers being discussed simply cannot be reached," she cautioned.
As Ignou positions itself at the forefront of India's higher education transformation, its comprehensive digital shift, multilingual accessibility initiatives, and skills integration represent a transformative model for how open universities can contribute meaningfully to national development goals. With automation as its core enabler and student-centric innovation as its guiding principle, Ignou's evolution reflects the changing paradigm of education delivery in a rapidly developing India.
