The NIPUN Bharat Mission is a national scheme launched by the Ministry of Education in July 2021. NIPUN stands for National Initiative for Proficiency in Reading with Understanding and Numeracy. The mission's origin lies in the recognition of a foundational learning deficit, and it was launched as a key component of the National Education Policy (NEP) 2020. Its core objective is to ensure the universal acquisition of foundational literacy and numeracy (FLN) for every child in the age group of 3 to 9 years (pre-school to Grade 3). The mission aims to achieve this goal by the academic year 2026-27. This target date was extended from the original 2025 deadline set in the NEP 2020 due to learning disruptions caused by the COVID-19 pandemic.
The mission is implemented by the Department of School Education and Literacy through a five-tier implementation mechanism spanning the National, State, District, Block, and School levels. It is financially supported under the centrally sponsored Samagra Shiksha Scheme, which itself subsumed the earlier Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan (SSA), Rashtriya Madhyamik Shiksha Abhiyan (RMSA), and Teacher Education (TE) schemes. Key provisions include intensive teacher capacity building through programs like NISHTHA (National Initiative for School Heads and Teachers Holistic Advancement), development of high-quality learning materials, and a shift towards activity and play-based pedagogy. The mission connects directly to the broader educational reforms envisioned in the NEP 2020.