Budget 2024: Educationists call for greater allocation, focus on research

It was widely expected that both Naidu and Nitish, who have been part of NDA now and then, would push for additional funds for their states

Educationists are hopeful that the first Budget of Modi 3.0, to be presented later this month by finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman, will see a significant increase in the allocation for the education sector with emphasis on research.

They have called for greater investment in research to foster innovation and keep pace with global advancements, saying strengthening these capabilities is crucial for India’s growth in science, technology and other critical areas.

“In the 2024-25 India budget, a significant boost to education and research funding is imperative. Despite ranking third globally for scientific research, India’s 40th position in innovation is worrisome.

“With R&D spending at just 0.65 percent of GDP, much lower than the BRICS average and the global average of 1.8 percent, it is crucial to enhance this investment,” said V Ramgopal Rao, Vice Chancellor of BITS Pilani Group of Institutions and former IIT-Delhi director.

He said the National Research Foundation (NRF) should be pivotal in addressing these gaps. More schemes specifically targeting academia-industry collaborations are the need of the hour.

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The interim budget 2024, presented on February 1, set aside Rs 1.20 lakh crore for education, which is Rs 9,091 crore, or 7.26 percent, lower than the revised estimate of Rs 1,29,718 crore for 2023-24.

Allocation for school education increased from Rs 72,473 crore (revised estimate) in 2023-24 to Rs 73,008 crore (budgeted estimate) in 2024-25, an increase of just 0.7 percent.

Higher education received Rs 47,619 crore in 2024-25, a decline of 18 percent from Rs 57,244 crore (revised estimate) in 2023-24.

Interim Budget 2024

According to Dr Kapil Pandla, Dean, Sharda School of Business Studies, there should be a significant increase in allocation for higher education institutions to enhance infrastructure, research capabilities and overall quality.

“The Budget 2024 should emphasise vocational training and skill development programmes integrated within higher education to better align with industry needs and improve the employability of graduates,” Pandla said.

The government allocated Rs 12,000 crore through Pradhan Mantri Kaushal Vikas Yojana 4.0 for training around 10 million youth. It deserves better higher allocation this time, he said.

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Specific funds

In the interim budget 2024, the Samagra Shiksha Abhiyan, the government’s flagship programme for pre-primary to higher secondary level schools, was allocated Rs 37,500 crore, an increase of 12.76 percent against Rs 33,000 (revised estimates) in 2023-24.

The Samagra Shiksha Abhiyan subsumes the Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan (SSA), Rashtriya Madhyamik Shiksha Abhiyan (RMSA) and Teacher Education (TE) programmes.

The Union government-owned public technical institutes — Indian Institutes of Technology (IITs) received Rs 10,324 crore (budget estimates) for FY25 against Rs 10,384 crore (RE) in FY24.

“(In) the last few years, the spend on education has been oscillating between 2.5 and 3 percent. It would be encouraging to see allocation towards education be upped to the more optimal 6 percent and beyond. That essentially means that we as a country must be prepared to spend upwards of the previously allocated Rs 1.32 lakh crore on education by encouraging the setting up of new institutions, especially K-12 schools,” said Kanak Gupta, Group Director of Seth MR Jaipuria Schools.

He added that the advent of artificial intelligence (AI) and the aspirations as set by the National Education Policy (NEP) 2020 has propelled planning at schools and the finance minister in the budget should encourage opportunities for innovative learning platforms in classrooms.

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“Increased funding is the key to unlocking the vision of AI in classrooms. As of 2023, approximately 29 percent of children with disabilities in India were not enrolled in schools; research also indicates one in sixty-eight students in India has certain learning challenges. I am expecting to focus on the same as well,” Gupta added.