India launches AI literacy programme to train 10 lakh teachers by 2027

Training 1 million 10 lakh teachers is more than a milestone of scale it is the foundation of a responsible, ethical, and India-centric AI ecosystem in education, firmly aligned with PM Narendra Modis vision of Viksit Bharat, he added.

The Centre has launched a literacy programme aimed at training over 10 lakh teachers in Artificial Intelligence for everyday classroom teaching by 2027. The initiative, ''AI Literacy for Teachers'', will be implemented by Bodhan AI -- a Centre of Excellence in AI for Education incubated at the Indian Institute of Technology Madras. The announcement was made by Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan during the IIT Madras Technology Summit held at Bharat Mandapam on May 5. The programme seeks to integrate AI into routine teaching practices, including lesson planning, content creation, assessments and student feedback systems, with the aim of reducing teacher workload and improving learning outcomes, according to an official statement. Pradhan said the initiative would help create a ''responsible, ethical and India-centric AI ecosystem in education'' aligned with the vision of Viksit Bharat. The senior BJP leader said, ''As we move from vision to execution, initiatives like the AI Literacy Program for Teachers are pivotal to shaping India's unique pathway in artificial intelligence: one that is inclusive in access, interoperable in design, and sovereign in capability.'' ''By integrating AI into everyday classrooms, we are not merely introducing technology; we are empowering our teachers to become architects of a future-ready India. Training 1 million (10 lakh) teachers is more than a milestone of scale; it is the foundation of a responsible, ethical, and India-centric AI ecosystem in education, firmly aligned with PM Narendra Modi's vision of Viksit Bharat,'' he added. Director of IIT Madras V. Kamakoti said AI literacy among teachers was essential to ensure meaningful adoption of technology in classrooms. ''India's strength lies in its scale and diversity, and technology must rise to meet that complexity. As AI begins to reshape education, building AI literacy among teachers becomes foundational to ensuring meaningful adoption. ''This initiative demonstrates how AI can be integrated into everyday teaching practices, enabling teachers to enhance pedagogy, improve efficiency, and deliver better learning outcomes at scale,'' Kamakoti said. Bodhan AI Principal Investigator Mitesh Khapra said the programme aimed to make AI a ''trusted co-pilot'' for teachers by helping them improve instructional quality and save time on routine tasks. The initiative will be rolled out in phases, beginning with pilot projects in the coming months, followed by the launch of the first public cohort on Teachers' Day on September 5. It is expected to scale to 10 lakh teachers by 2027. Aligned with the broader Bharat EduAI stack vision of Bodhan AI, the program focuses on AI-driven lesson planning, automated assessments, multilingual communication tools, administrative workflows and AI-assisted student learning systems, the statement said. It will be implemented in collaboration with the Union Ministry of Education, school systems such as Kendriya Vidyalayas, Navodaya Vidyalayas and state governments, among others.