The Indian AI market is expected to grow by about 25-35% by 2027. According to NASSCOM, India had an AI talent pool of around 600,000-650,000 professionals in 2024, but the country will require more than 1.25 million AI professionals by 2027. This growing demand highlights the need to integrate AI into the education system to prepare a skilled workforce for the future.

Policy Framework for AI in Education

The Government of India has introduced several policies and initiatives to promote AI education and research. 

National Education Policy 2020 (NEP 2020)

• The National Education Policy 2020 recognises that technologies such as artificial intelligence, big data, and machine learning will significantly transform labour markets and drive innovation. 
• The policy emphasises the need for multidisciplinary education and encourages students to learn AI, computer science, and data science along with other subjects.
• Since education is placed in the Concurrent List of the Constitution, the recommendations of NEP 2020 guide both central and state governments in integrating AI learning into education policies. 

IndiaAI Mission

• IndiaAI Mission was launched in March 2024 with a budget of ₹10,371.92 crore for five years. 
• It provides computing infrastructure for developing AI models, creates datasets for training, and develops practical applications across sectors including education.
• The mission aims to position India as a global AI leader by supporting research, innovation, infrastructure development, and capacity building across government institutions, startups, academia, and the private sector.

AI in School Education

The Ministry of Education has integrated AI into school curricula across India through CBSE and NCERT, starting with grades 9, under National Education Policy (NEP) 2020 and National Curriculum Framework (NCF) 2023.

• CBSE currently offers a 15-hour AI skill module from Class VI onwards and AI as an optional subject for students in Classes IX to XII. 
• NCERT has incorporated AI-related topics in the Class XI Computer Science and Informatics Practices textbooks. 
• AI and machine learning technologies have also been used to translate textbooks of Classes I and II into 22 Indian languages, making educational resources accessible to a wider group of learners.

AI-Courses for Students and Educators

Several digital platforms have been introduced to promote AI learning and improve accessibility in education.

DIKSHA platform

• The DIKSHA platform, developed by the Ministry of Education, provides digital learning resources for students, teachers, and parents. 
• AI-based tools on the platform enable features such as keyword search in videos and read-aloud functions for visually impaired students.

SWAYAM (Study Webs of Active Learning for Young Aspiring Minds)

• SWAYAM (Study Webs of Active Learning for Young Aspiring Minds) offers more than 110 free courses on artificial intelligence and related fields from premier institutions such as IITs and IISc. Over 4.1 million learners have enrolled in these courses.

SOAR (Skilling for AI Readiness) initiative

• The Ministry of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship has also launched the SOAR (Skilling for AI Readiness) initiative to promote AI awareness among students and teachers from Classes VI to XII.
• The programme includes three modules of 15 hours each for students and a 45-hour “AI for Educators” module for teachers. 
• This module trains teachers to understand AI concepts, use AI tools in classrooms, promote inclusive education, and teach ethical and responsible use of AI.

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AI in Higher Education

Higher education institutions are also incorporating AI into their academic programmes. 

• The University Grants Commission introduced an undergraduate curriculum framework in 2022 that includes subjects such as artificial intelligence, big data analytics, machine learning, drone technologies, and deep learning.
• The All India Council for Technical Education has taken several initiatives to promote AI education. These include integrating AI components into IT-related courses, organising hackathons to promote innovation, offering scholarships for women engineering students under programmes such as PRAGATI and Saraswati, and conducting faculty development programmes.
• AI-powered search engine Perplexity AI has partnered with AICTE to provide AI support to nearly 40 million students across 14,000 institutions. The collaboration aims to help students explore how AI tools can support research, innovation, and real-world applications.

AI in Education – Research and Development 

The government is supporting research and development in AI through various initiatives or schemes.

IndiaAI Initiative

• Under the IndiaAI initiative, a Centre for Generative AI called Srijan has been established at Indian Institute of Technology Jodhpur in collaboration with Meta.

YuvAi Initiative

• The YuvAi initiative, launched in collaboration with the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology and AICTE, aims to train around 100,000 students and developers between the ages of 18 and 30 over a period of three years. 
• The programme focuses on developing AI solutions for sectors such as healthcare, agriculture, education, smart cities, and financial inclusion.
• The initiative includes components such as a Generative AI resource hub, training courses for young developers, workshops on foundational AI concepts, hackathons for developing AI solutions, and an innovation accelerator supporting student-led startups.

AI for Inclusive Education

Under the IndiaAI Mission, several AI-based solutions are being developed to support inclusive education and research. AI tools are being used to help children with learning disabilities bridge learning gaps and improve educational outcomes. Following innovations can help address the shortage of special educators in India and make education more accessible for all students: 

• Readabled: A web-based application that helps children with dyslexia improve phonetic awareness through interactive exercises.
• ScreenPlay: A digital, game-based screening tool used to identify children aged 3–6 who may be at risk of autism or other developmental conditions.

• Voice Fusion AI: An application that provides assistive learning support to individuals with Specific Learning Disabilities (SLDs) in multiple Indian languages.
• Adaptive Learning and Detection for SLDs: Uses advanced AI techniques to detect learning disorders such as dyslexia, dysgraphia, and dyscalculia.

• Jiveesha: An AI-powered diagnostic platform for early detection of specific learning disabilities.
• Special Educator AI: An AI-driven system designed to address the shortage of special educators and support students with learning disabilities

Skilling Initiatives for AI Workforce

To prepare India’s workforce for the digital economy, the government has launched several large-scale skilling programmes.

• The Pradhan Mantri Kaushal Vikas Yojana provides short-term training and recognition of prior learning in emerging technologies, including AI. The scheme has already trained thousands of individuals, with a significant participation of women.
• FutureSkills PRIME, developed in collaboration with industry partners, offers hundreds of courses and digital learning pathways in areas such as AI, big data, and cloud computing.
• iGOT Karmayogi Bharat platform provides training to government officials in AI, data analytics, and digital transformation.
• YUVA AI for All programme aims to provide basic AI literacy to one crore citizens through short self-paced courses.

Responsible AI in Education 

Several institutions in India are working on responsible and trustworthy AI to ensure AI systems are fair, transparent, and safe to use. Major research areas include:

• Removing bias from AI datasets using synthetic data.
• Reducing bias in healthcare AI systems.
• Developing explainable AI so decisions made by AI can be understood.
• Building privacy-protecting machine learning models.
• Creating ethical standards and certification frameworks for AI.

Institutions such as IIT Delhi, IIT Jodhpur, IIT Roorkee, IIIT Delhi, and other research organisations are involved in developing technologies that promote transparency, fairness, and accountability in AI systems.