Higher education department reviews over 95% physical files, 87% e-files under special campaign

NEW DELHI: The Ministry of Education's Department of Higher Education (DoHE) has reviewed over 95 per cent physical files and 87 per cent e-files under a special campaign, officials said on Tuesday. Around 1,159 sites were covered across the country under the campaign, making significant progress in reducing pendency, freeing 14,44,839 sq ft of office space and improving record management, they said.

"The Department of Higher Education has reviewed 95.4 pc (2,04,859) of physical files and 87.46 pc (62,564) of e-files under Special Campaign 5.0. The department also generated Rs 6.89 crore worth of revenue through scrap disposal," the ministry said in a statement.

"Over 3,312 files were digitised and 90,629 physical and electronic files were weeded out or closed," it added. As part of a Special Campaign for Disposal of Pending Matters organised from November, 2025 to August, 2026, a significant volume of public interface matters, including 24,126 public grievances and 4,177 public grievance appeals, were disposed of.

Also read PMKVY 4.0: Key skill development scheme misses 90% of target, gets 24% of budget for 2025-26, shows MDSE data

Special campaign in two phases

Special Campaign 6.0 will proceed in two phases -- preparatory phase from September 15 to 30 followed by the implementation phase from October 2 to 31.

"Heads and faculties of centrally funded Institutions, UGC, AICTE and bureaus of DoHE are setting specific targets, identifying pending references and outlining key areas for cleanliness and space management during the preparatory phase," the ministry said.

Special attention will be given to record management, disposal of outdated materials and the beautification of offices. In furtherance of the previous year's focus on the scientific management of e-waste, the campaign this year will emphasise "effective collection, segregation and disposal of e-waste".

The implementation phase will focus on clearing pending matters, including public grievances, parliamentary assurances and inter-ministerial communications and VVIP references. "Participating offices will be required to report their progress on a daily basis. The campaign also aims to promote sustainability and foster greater public engagement through social media, using the hashtag #SpecialCampaign6," it added.