The National Council of Educational Research and Training (NCERT), which prepares school curriculum and textbooks, will now be able to award its own academic degrees as it has been granted deemed university status.

According to a media release issued by the Press Information Bureau, education minister Dharmendra Pradhan on Friday attended the 63rd foundation-day celebration of the NCERT and announced that it had been given the status of a deemed-to-be university.

The NCERT now functions as a registered society to assist and advise the government on education. It also publishes model curriculum and textbooks for all classes.

The NCERT has five Regional Institutes of Education where BEd courses are offered. Since the NCERT is not a university, the students are awarded degrees by local universities that have affiliated the RIEs.