Fees and digital infrastructure
The panel noted that CBSE exempts visually impaired candidates from examination fees but has a uniform fee of Rs 1,600 for five subjects for students appearing in India.
It said CBSE did not provide financial concessions or fee waivers for socio-economically disadvantaged sections and recommended targeted exemptions for economically weaker and socially disadvantaged groups “in order to lessen the financial burden and give them opportunity to continue their education”.
The committee also recommended greater transparency in CBSE answer-sheet evaluation through standardised and objective assessment.
It said the Board’s digital infrastructure under Pariksha Sangam should be continually upgraded to ensure “foolproof security and efficiency” for Board examinations as well as national selection tests such as the Central Teacher Eligibility Test (CTET) and Jawahar Navodaya Vidyalaya Selection Test (JNVST).
Disability access
The panel flagged a severe gap in infrastructure for children with special needs (CwSN), noting that more than half of schools lack CwSN-friendly facilities.
According to UDISE+ 2024-25, of 14,71,437 schools nationwide, only 5,23,143 have CwSN toilets and 8,08,466 have ramps with handrails.
During 2024-25, Rs 482 lakh was allocated for constructing 186 CwSN toilets, but only Rs 2.60 lakh was utilised, with no progress against the physical targets.
“The severe gap in the availability of CwSN friendly infrastructure shows that more than half of the schools across the country are devoid of CwSN friendly infrastructure,” the committee said.
The panel also noted that only Rs 80.50 lakh was utilised against a budgetary grant of Rs 962 lakh for special educators in the elementary section, with limited progress in recruiting and retaining educators for CwSN students.
It recommended that the ministry set annual targets for the utilisation of funds and execution of CwSN-related projects, provide safe and accessible infrastructure within a fixed timeframe and assess the requirement for special educators nationwide.
Education spending
On public spending, the committee noted that one of the key objectives of NEP 2020 was to raise public expenditure on education to 6% of gross domestic product.
However, combined spending by the Centre and states currently stands at 4.1% of GDP, it said, reflecting a persistent shortfall as NEP 2020 reaches its final year of implementation.
The Union Budget 2026-27 allocated Rs 1,39,286 crore to the Education Ministry, an increase of 8.27% over the previous year.
The committee recommended a dedicated, time-bound financial roadmap requiring both the Centre and states to increase education spending.
“To bridge the GDP gap, the Ministry should move away from marginal incremental budgeting and ensure a mandatory annual baseline increase of 10% in the education budget to gradually converge with the 6% GDP target,” it said.
As the second phase of NEP enters the pipeline, the committee also recommended a specialised, non-lapsable education fund to support long-term infrastructure creation, digital expansion and inclusive education across financial years.