The Ministry of Education will launch the School Management Committee (SMC) Guidelines 2026 on May 6.In a post on X, the ministry said, “The School Management Committee (SMC) Guidelines 2026 will be launched on May 6, 2026, a major step towards strengthening school governance at the grassroots level.“The ministry said the revised guidelines are in line with the National Education Policy 2020 and aims to strengthen school management at the grassroots level.“These efforts are in line with the NEP 2020 vision, which emphasizes participatory, inclusive and community-driven approaches to education,” it said.The ministry also emphasized the role of parents and local communities in the functioning of schools, calling for greater participation in School Management Committees (SMCs).
What are SMCs?
School Management Committees (SMCs) are local level bodies formed in government and aided schools, which bring together parents, teachers and community members to participate in the functioning of schools.Mandated under the Right to Education Act 2009, these committees aim to act as a bridge between the school and the community. They play a role in preparing school development plans, monitoring the utilization of funds, and monitoring infrastructure and learning conditions.Prioritizing community involvement SMCs should include elected representatives of the local authority, parents/guardians of enrolled children, and teachers, with at least 75% parent or guardian participation. The idea is to ensure that schools are not run in isolation, but are accountable to the communities they serve, a principle also reinforced under the National Education Policy 2020.
What is NEP 2020?
The National Education Policy 2020 (NEP 2020) is India’s current education policy framework, introduced to reform the country’s school and higher education systems. It replaced the earlier 1986 policy and aimed to make education more flexible, inclusive and skill-based.The National Education Policy 2020 does not introduce School Management Committees (SMCs) from scratch, which comes from the Right to Education Act, but it strengthens and expands their role in the way schools are run.Under NEP 2020, SMCs are seen as a key component of decentralized and community-driven school governance. The policy emphasizes that schools should not operate in isolation, and that parents and local communities should have a strong voice in decision-making.
