The Indira Gandhi National Open University (IGNOU), established by an
Act of Parliament in 1985, has continuously striven to build an inclusive knowledge society through inclusive education. It has tried to increase
the Gross Enrollment Ratio (GER) by offering high-quality teaching through the Open and Distance Learning (ODL) mode.
The University began by offering two academic programmes in 1987, i.e., Diploma
in Management and Diploma in Distance Education, with a strength of 4,528 students.
Today, it serves the educational aspirations of over 3 million students in India
and other countries through 21 Schools of Studies and a network of 67 regional centres, around 2,667 learner support centres and 29 overseas partner
institutions. The University offers about 228 certificate, diploma, degree and doctoral programmes, with a strength of nearly 810 faculty members
and 574 academic staff at the headquarters and regional centres and about 33,212 academic counsellors from conventional institutions of higher
learning, professional organisations, and industry among others.
The mandate of the University is to:
- Provide access to higher education to all segments of the society;
- Offer high-quality, innovative and need-based programmes at different levels, to
all those who require them;
- Reach out to the disadvantaged by offering programmes in all parts of the country
at affordable costs; and
- Promote, coordinate and regulate the standards of education offered through open
and distance learning in the country.
- To achieve the twin objectives of widening access for all sections of society and
providing continual professional development and training to all sectors of the
economy, the University uses a variety of media and latest technology in imparting
education. This is reflected in the formulated vision of IGNOU, keeping its objectives
in focus, which reads: