A national academic depository (NAD) on the lines of a securities depository, is set to come up in the next three months to digitally store school learning certificates, degrees and other academic awards of institutions of higher education. The depository would be established and operationalised within the next three months and would be rolled out throughout the country in 2017-18, the Union Cabinet decided.

• The NAD would be operationalised by NSDL Database Management Limited (NDML) and CDSL Ventures, Limited (CVL) — two of the wholly-owned subsidiaries of the Depositories registered under Securities Exchange Board of India (SEBI) Act, 1992.
• Academic institutions would be responsible for the authenticity of data digitally uploaded by them into the system. The depositories will ensure the integrity of the data in the NAD.
• The NAD will register educational institutions, boards, eligibility assessment bodies, students and other users such as verifying entities like banks, employer companies, government agencies and academic institutions.
• It will provide digital or a printed copy of the academic award with security features to the students or other authorised users.
• NAD will verify academic awards online on the same day of request initiated by any authorised user.
• Requests for access to academic awards from potential employers, and academic institutions would be only on the basis of the consent of the student.