'One Nation, One Data' Portal to Revolutionize Higher Education in 2023-24

The implementation of the ‘One Nation, One Data’ portal, a centralized platform for data sharing among higher education institutions in the country, is set to commence in the upcoming academic session of 2023-24. According to reliable sources, the groundwork for this transformative initiative has already begun. This portal represents a significant reform aimed at strengthening the assessment and accreditation system of colleges, universities, and other higher education institutes by establishing a single source of data collection and sharing across various regulatory bodies.

An official familiar with the development stated, “The groundwork for data compilation and correction through the portal has already commenced. Considering the vast amount of data available, a major challenge lies in collating existing data provided by different institutions to various agencies. This data is currently being cross-checked with the respective colleges and universities to ensure consistency, authenticity, and eliminate duplication.”

The ‘One Nation, One Data’ (ONOD) portal will serve as a unified online platform where higher education institutions can upload essential data, such as student numbers, faculty details, infrastructure information, research projects, and placement records. This data is required by regulatory bodies for periodic assessments, rankings, and grading. The portal will simplify the data management process, addressing the issue faced by institutions when furnishing information on multiple platforms multiple times throughout the year. Furthermore, institutions will no longer be required to submit the same data repeatedly, as it can be shared through an Application Programming Interface (API). Any necessary updates or additions can be made directly on the portal itself, as highlighted by the official.

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The data collected through the ONOD portal can be utilized by different agencies for various purposes. For instance, regulatory bodies like the All India Council for Technical Education (AICTE) can employ it to grant approvals to colleges and institutes, the National Institutional Ranking Framework (NIRF) can utilize it for rankings, and the National Assessment and Accreditation Council (NAAC) can leverage it for grading purposes. This endeavor is being undertaken by a committee led by Prof. Anil D Sahasrabudhe, Chairperson of the National Board of Accreditation (NBA), and the National Educational Technology Forum (NETF), established by the Ministry of Education (MoE).

“We are also working on rationalizing the data requirements of regulatory bodies for approvals, rankings, and assessments, while eliminating any unnecessary information. The objective is to reduce the data submission process to only what is truly essential. The committee has invited members from these regulatory bodies, who utilize the data, for consultations on this matter,” explained the official.

The ‘One Nation, One Data’ portal is a pivotal reform recommended in the draft report titled ‘Transformative Reforms for Strengthening Periodic Assessment and Accreditation of all HEIs of India.’ This report was formulated by the Overarching Committee, established in November of the previous year under the chairmanship of K. Radhakrishnan, the head of the standing committee of the IIT Council. The report was made available for public feedback until June 22, after which the finalized version is expected to be released. The existing grading system for higher education institutes, conducted by the NAAC, encountered allegations of irregularities in March of this year.

Officials emphasized that one of the primary reasons for gaps in the grading system was the inconsistency and duplication of data arising from multiple agencies requesting similar data from institutions at various points throughout the year. The committee responsible for data integration will implement the changes recommended in the final report. “The finalized report is yet to be released, following which the actual work will commence. Currently, we are laying the groundwork,” stated a second official, who preferred to remain anonymous.