The University Grants Commission’s Distance Education Bureau (UGC-DEB) has issued fresh guidelines and reminders for students planning to take admission in Online or Open and Distance Learning (ODL) programmes in 2026, urging them to verify both the institution and the course before enrolling. This comes in the context of rising complaints from students who enrolled in unrecognised institutions and later found their degrees invalid for jobs and higher education.
As per UGC’s official notice, students enrolling in distance or online programmes from 2024-25 onwards are required to generate a DEB-ID (Distance Education Bureau ID) linked to their ABC-ID (Academic Bank of Credits ID). This unique identifier tracks the student’s academic progress across ODL and online programmes and ensures they are enrolled in an approved institution and an approved course.
What the New UGC Rules Mean for Students
- Every student must verify the university’s UGC/ ODL/Online recognition on the official UGC-DEB portal at deb.ugc.ac.in before paying any fee or completing admission
- Not every department or course of a recognised university is automatically approved — students must verify the specific programme they want to enroll in
- Certain subjects are not permitted to be offered in fully online or distance mode under UGC regulations — students must check this restriction list
UGC Has Penalised Universities for Violations
In recent years, UGC has taken strict action against universities offering distance and online programmes without proper approval or beyond the approved scope:
- Suresh Gyan Vihar University, Jaipur — banned from offering Online mode programmes
- Periyar University, Tamil Nadu — debarred from offering online programmes for two academic years
- NMIMS, Maharashtra — withheld from offering ODL and Online programmes for multiple sessions
This shows that UGC is actively monitoring compliance and students enrolled in banned programmes may face degree invalidation.
How to Check Your University’s Approval Status
- Visit deb.ugc.ac.in
- Click on the Entitled HEIs or Approved Institutions link
- Search for your university and programme name
- Verify that the specific course and the current academic year carry valid approval
CBSE Has Also Warned Students
In a separate advisory issued by CBSE to all affiliated schools, students appearing for Class 10 and 12 results have been asked to check the UGC list of 22 fake universities currently listed at ugc.gov.in under the HEIs section before taking any admission. Ten of these fake universities are based in Delhi alone. Students must not pay any fees to unrecognised institutions, as such admissions carry no legal or academic validity in India.
