Dharmendra Pradhan Launches School Management Committee Guidelines 2026

Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan on Wednesday launched the School Management Committee (SMC) Guidelines 2026 at Vigyan Bhawan, describing them as a major step towards strengthening community participation and improving school governance across the country.

The event was attended by Delhi Education Minister Ashish Sood, Chhattisgarh School Education Minister Gajender Yadav, senior officials from the Department of School Education and Literacy, and other government representatives.

Speaking at the launch, Pradhan said the new guidelines would help translate the vision of the National Education Policy 2020 into action across nearly 15 lakh schools in the country.

He said the guidelines envision School Management Committees as a bridge between students, teachers, parents and communities, with the aim of ensuring holistic development of children through shared responsibility and stronger public participation in education.

The Education Minister said the government remains committed to ensuring education, health, well-being, mental health support and assistance for Children With Special Needs (CWSN). He added that the guidelines also recognise the importance of mentoring, handholding and community ownership in strengthening schools.

Pradhan said the SMC Guidelines 2026 seek to develop School Management Committees into a sustainable culture and eventually a people’s movement focused on improving educational outcomes.

Referring to initiatives such as Vidyanjali, he said India’s education system has historically benefited from strong community participation and that the new framework aims to revive that tradition by placing schools once again at the centre of societal engagement.

Addressing the gathering, Ashish Sood said the launch of the guidelines reflects a transformative shift taking place in India’s education system. He stated that India’s journey towards becoming a developed nation by 2047 would depend on the strength of its classrooms.

Sood said the earlier School Management Committee framework introduced after the Right to Education Act was largely focused on grant monitoring, infrastructure supervision and administrative functions. However, emerging priorities such as child safety, mental health, Foundational Literacy and Numeracy (FLN), digital transparency, learning outcomes and community participation now require a broader and more active framework.

He said the new guidelines redefine School Management Committees as “school community governing institutions” that will actively contribute to academic quality, student welfare, safety, inclusivity, digital governance and transparency.

Chhattisgarh School Education Minister Gajender Yadav said active public participation is necessary for improving children’s learning outcomes. He noted that the new guidelines would help strengthen the connection between parents and schools by encouraging greater involvement of local guardians in school functioning and management.