The Indira Gandhi National Open University (IGNOU), established by an Act of Parliament in 1985, has continuously striven to build an inclusive knowledge society through inclusive education. It has tried to increase the Gross Enrollment Ratio (GER) by offering high-quality teaching through the Open and Distance Learning (ODL) mode.
The University began by offering two academic programmes in 1987, i.e., Diploma in Management and Diploma in Distance Education, with a strength of 4,528 students.
The Indira Gandhi National Open University, the National Resource Centre for Open and Distance Learning, with international recognition and presence, shall provide seamless access to sustainable and learner-centric quality education, skill up gradation and training to all by using innovative technologies and methodologies and ensuring convergence of existing systems for large-scale human resource development, required for promoting integrated national development and global understanding.
The University also has a considerable international presence, as has been said earlier. It encourages and funds the participation of its faculty in international conferences and seminars, and organizes several international conferences too.
An innovative Bachelor of Arts programme in Applied Sign Language has been launched in collaboration with the University of Central Lancashire (UcLAN) of Britain. The programme is the first-of-its-kind in the world.
