New Delhi, March 22 -- As the Ministry of Education prepares to strengthen the open schooling framework through the National Institute of Open Schooling (NIOS), as part of a nationwide effort to bring out-of-school children back into the education system, concerns have emerged over the institution's finances and functioning. A recent working paper by the National Institute of Public Finance and Policy (NIPFP), a finance ministry think tank, highlights that NIOS has not received government budget support since 2012-13. Instead, it operates largely as a self-financing body, relying heavily on student fees, the paper notes. The report, published on February 18, flags concerns over how its funds are being utilised. "In 2021-22, the institute ge...