Press Information Bureau · 11 Aug 2026
Academic Bank of Credits and APAAR : Building India's Lifelong Learning Ecosystem
The Ministry of Education has reported major nationwide adoption of the Academic Bank of Credits (ABC) and APAAR, which together support digital academic records and student mobility. As of 2 July 2026, 2,899 higher-education institutions were registered with ABC, with 4.79 crore APAAR IDs mapped to awarding institutions and nearly 9.78 crore credit records linked to learners. Separately, 26.35 crore verified APAAR IDs had been generated across India. The systems support credit accumulation, transfer and redemption, alongside multiple-entry and multiple exit pathways.
Why it matters
The scale of ABC and APAAR adoption marks an important step toward a more flexible and digitally integrated higher education system in India. By allowing academic credits to be stored and transferred across institutions, ABC can make it easier for students to resume education after interruptions, move between programmes and institutions, and receive recognition for accumulated learning.
For higher-education institutions, this also represents a shift toward more standardised digital academic record management. Effective implementation will require institutions to maintain accurate credit data, integrate their systems with national platforms and establish reliable processes for uploading and verifying student records.
The initiative also supports the broader objectives of NEP 2020 and the National Credit Framework by connecting academic, vocational and experiential learning. Its long term value will depend not only on adoption numbers but also on interoperability, data accuracy, privacy, institutional readiness and how effectively students can use these systems to exercise genuine academic mobility.
Source: Press Information Bureau (opens in a new tab)
8