The APAAR scheme, initiated by the Education Ministry via Common Service Centres (CSC), mandates registration of all college students on the Academic Bank of Credits (ABC). This endeavor strives to establish a unified “One Nation, One Student ID.” For further information, please refer to the details provided here.
The Ministry of Education has introduced the APAAR ID Card, known as the Automated Permanent Academic Account Registry (APAAR), in rural regions through Common Service Centres (CSCs). As part of this initiative, all college students are required to enroll on the Academic Bank of Credits (ABC) to establish a unified ‘One Nation, One Student ID.’ To gain admission to any institution or university under the National Education Policy (NEP) 2020, students must furnish an ABC ID.
In efforts to enhance transparency and simplify both school and higher education, Sanjay Kumar, the secretary of the school department, advocated for issuing temporary APAAR IDs to students, which would be linked to their Aadhaar and Digilocker accounts.
What is the Academic Bank of Credits (ABC)?
The Academic Bank of Credits (ABC) serves as a digital archive where students can securely store their grades, certificates, credits, and personal information. To access this service, students can visit their nearest Common Service Centre (CSC). Each student is assigned a unique 12-digit ABC ID, which facilitates the storage, management, and retrieval of academic credits, encompassing degrees, diplomas, certificates, training records, and extracurricular achievements in a digital format.
With the ABC identity card, students will have a streamlined process for transferring admissions from one institution to another for both undergraduate and postgraduate programs. Additionally, colleges and institutions will have seamless access to student data.
Benefits of APAAR ID
The Academic Bank of Credits, modeled after the National Academic Depository (NAD), facilitates student credit registration and transfer. However, academic institutions oversee the final steps of credit redemption, certificate issuance, and award record compilation.
Highlighting the advantages of APAAR ID, Anil Sahasrabudhe, the head of the All India Council for Technical Education (AICTE), emphasized that students will only need to furnish their APAAR ID instead of physical certificates in the future. He further mentioned that students will retain their ID indefinitely.
The CEO of CSC mentioned that Village Level Entrepreneurs (VLEs) will distribute APAAR IDs to students and handle their enrollment in classes. These ID cards not only centralize student information but also mitigate irregularities and support schools lacking online service infrastructure.
