Government of India has officially entrusted the National Council of Educational Research and Training (NCERT) with the responsibility of granting equivalence to Secondary (Class 10) and Senior Secondary (Class 12) certificates issued by various school education boards.
The notification, published in the e-Gazette on 6th September 2025 by the Department of School Education and Literacy, Ministry of Education, supersedes the earlier 2021 notification that assigned this responsibility to the Association of Indian Universities (AIU).
Role of NCERT and PARAKH
NCERT will execute this responsibility through the National Assessment Centre – Performance Assessment, Review and Analysis of Knowledge for Holistic Development (PARAKH), established under the National Education Policy 2020. The institutional mechanism is designed to ensure that equivalence determination follows a rigorous and academically robust process, maintaining the highest standards of education.
Scope and Impact
The new system covers:
Central and State Government school boards
Private Indian school boards established by Acts of Parliament or State legislatures
Recognized statutory bodies and institutions authorized to conduct examinations
The equivalence granted by NCERT will be valid nationwide, providing automatic inter-board parity. This ensures smooth migration for students moving between different school boards across India, whether for higher education admissions or employment under Central and State Governments and Union Territories.
Ensuring Smooth Transitions
With NCERT now overseeing equivalence, students can expect a streamlined and standardized process when transferring between boards, reducing administrative hurdles and ensuring that their academic credentials are universally recognized across India.
This step aligns with the objectives of NEP 2020 to create a cohesive, high-quality education system and reinforces NCERT’s pivotal role in shaping educational standards across the country.
