With the objective of providing a world class universal education, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman announced the establishment of a National Digital University in the Union Budget 2022-2023. The adoption of digital learning platforms during the pandemic highlighted the need for a national digital learning platform for all. The announcement of a digital university comes as a path breaking step to fulfill this need.

The Digital university will improve learning outcomes of students by providing a personalised teaching experience to them. The high-quality e-content will be available in different regional languages and ICT formats. The foundation of this university will be on the networked hub and spoke model with hub building ICT expertise. India’s best public universities and institutions will collaborate as a network of hub and spoke to furnish the infrastructural and training requirements. The university will be set up as per the ISTE standards i.e., standards for the use of technology in teaching and learning.

The development of this Digital University is a pioneering step in building a more resilient digital education system. This intervention can provide additional support to the students impacted most by economic & logistical challenge in a targeted manner. However, there is a need to prepare for this digital transition. Therefore, we need to invest in building the digital capacities of students and increase their access to digital tools and platforms for smoother transitions.