The stakeholders in the education sector are expecting an increase in funds for research and development, alongwith more budgetary allocation for modern and state-of-the-art tools and equipment.
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Education Budget of India 2023 Updates, FM Nirmala Sitharaman Speech: The Education Ministry’s budget allocation this year increased by a marginal 8 per cent from Rs 1.12 lakh crore as opposed to 1.04 lakh crore in 2022-23. Of this, the Department of School Education is expected to get Rs 68,804 crore and Department of Higher Education Rs 44,094 crore.
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Interestingly, the Ministry’s biggest school education scheme, Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan, has been allocated almost the same amount as last year — Rs 37,453 crore compared to Rs 37,383 crore (budget estimate) in 2022-23. This is when students and teachers are still trying to recover the learning losses incurred during the pandemic.
During her budget speech, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman announced a national digital library for children and adolescents. A similar initiative was also announced in 2018 by the then Education Minister Prakash Javadekar. Since then, a national digital library is being run by IIT Kharagpur. It’s not clear how the finance minister’s announcement is different from what’s already in place.
Sitharaman also announced that teachers’ training will be re-envisioned through innovative pedagogy, curriculum transaction, continuous professional development dipstick survey and ICT implementation. To boost medical education, 157 new nursing colleges will be established and new programmes will be introduced for training in medical equipment.
In the next three years, Centre will recruit 38,800 teachers and support staff for the 740 model Eklavya Model Residential Schools, which are serving 3.5 lakh tribal students. That apart, three Centres of Excellence for artificial intelligence will be set up in top educational institutions. “Leading industry players will partner in conducting interdisciplinary research, develop cutting edge applications and scalable problem solutions in the areas of agriculture, health, sustainable cities,” she said. Read less
The stakeholders in the education sector are expecting an increase in funds for research and development, alongwith more budgetary allocation for modern and state-of-the-art tools and equipment.
Budget allocation for financial year 2023-24 for the World Bank aided Scheme of STARS has increased by Rs. 250.00 crore (45.45 per cent) from Rs. 550.00 cr in budget estimate 2022-23 to Rs. 800.00 crore in budget estimate 2023-24.
Allocation in Kendriya Vidyalaya Sangathan has increased by Rs. 713.98 crore (9.33 per cent) (from Rs.7650.00 crore in budget estimate 2022-23 to Rs. 8363.98 crore in budget estimate 2023-24) and in Navodaya Vidyalaya Samiti by 1371.50 cr (33.32 per cent) (from Rs.4115.00cr in budget estimate 2022-23 to Rs. 5486.50 cr in budget estimat 2023-24).
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IIT Madras to receive a grant of Rs 242 crore to undertake research on Lab Grown Diamonds (LGD). The institute will receive this grant over a period of five years to undertake research on lab grown diamonds (LGD). This research will be focused on driving indigenisation of the LGD manufacturing process. Read full report on indianexpress.com
Dr Mousumi Bhattacharya, Associate Professor of IIM Shillong said, "it is the last full Union Budget of the government before the next Lok Sabha election in 2024 where an attempt was made to address the concerns of the majority of the sectors with a special focus on green growth as India is shifting toward net zero carbon emissions by 2070. The budget will not only ensure self-reliance but also lay the path for sustainable growth of the Indian economy."
The education budget 2023-24 will help realise the objectives defined in the National Education Policy 2020. The new education policy lays a greater focus on skilling the youth of the country and linking education with industry and professional spheres, so as to enable students to be ready for future challenges and opportunities. The budget announcements have come as a boost to materialise these ideas.
— BHU Vice-Chancellor Prof. Sudhir Kumar Jain
"Giving a boost to education, skill development, entrepreneurship, R&D, digital infrastructure, green growth and job creation, the Budget draws a meticulous blueprint for India at 100 and lays a solid foundation for transforming India into a technology-driven knowledge-based economy," said Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan.
The emphasis on education and employment is progressive. To ensure that India's workforce is future-ready, new age courses such as coding, artificial intelligence, robotics, mechatronics, the Internet of Things (IoT), 3D printing drones etc. coupled with soft skills will help improve the overall employability of students.Since the pandemic, the education ecosystem has seen major transformation, and now with the introduction of 30 Skill India international centers, education will further witness the much needed skilling integration that was required. The government's focus on skill development and preparing students for the future is also evident through the initiative to open 100 labs in engineering institutes for building 5G service capabilities and augmenting the digital infrastructure for medical sciences, among other similar initiatives.The budget also addresses education from a more holistic perspective, by introducing innovative pedagogies and advanced training and research measures for teachers.
— Lt. Gen. (Dr.) M. D. Venkatesh, Vice Chancellor, Manipal Academy of Higher Education, Manipal.
With India becoming the fifth largest economy in the world, it lays a robust foundation for future growth, allowing bright and deserving students to dream big and pursue international education. However, it would have been ideal if the government could reduce the interest rates on education loans as Indians are the largest population who study abroad.
— Piyush Kumar, Regional Director- South Asia and Mauritius of IDP Education
Union Minister for Education, Dharmendra Pradhan said that this has been the highest-ever allocation of ?1,12,899 crore for the education sector. Total allocation of ?1,16,417crore for the education and skill development sector in Union Budget 2023-24. The budgetary allocation witnessed the jump of 13% (over revised estimates) which is 13,018.34 cr from financial year 2022-23. The Department of School Education has been allocated Rs 68,804 crore and Department of Higher Education gets Rs 44,094 crore.
“Union Budget 2023 is a holistic foundation for India of the future with an overall boost to education, skilling, job creation and entrepreneurship. The thrust on building digital and public infrastructure with a keen focus on sustainability, is a shot in the arm for education and entrepreneurship. The vision of creating Centres of Excellences in AI, national skill set centers and the boost to learn and adopt new age educational courses will definitely go a long way in filling skill and employability gaps. New initiatives like the National Digital Library for children and adolescents will herald a new era in community participation ably supported and guided by Higher Education Institutes like IIMs. This indeed is a solid blueprint laid out for India@2047, when independent India turns 100,” said Professor Debashis Chatterjee, Director IIM Kozhikode
"The revamped Pradhan Mantri Kaushal Vikas Yojana is a step in the right direction as it aims to impart new-age skills such as AI, robotics and 3D printing, offering young Indians a wide range of career opportunities globally," said Raghav Gupta, Managing Director, India and APAC, Coursera.
"Overall, this budget is progressive as it accelerates the government's efforts for inclusive and sustainable development, and we are pleased that the Government has recognized the importance of a Technology-driven and skill-enhanced economy. It provides a strong impetus for growth and job creation. The National Digital Library for children, initiated by the honourable Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, is a testament to the government's commitment to modernizing and advancing the economy. As AI becomes increasingly integrated into our lives, the skill enhancement initiative recognizes its significance as a necessary tool for future growth and success," said Physicswallah
"Giving a boost to education, skill development, entrepreneurship, R&D, digital infrastructure, green growth and job creation, the Budget draws a meticulous blueprint for India at100 and lays a solid foundation for transforming India into a technology-driven knowledge-based economy," said Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan
"While focusing on the primary, secondary, and tertiary sectors, the Government has emphasized fostering ease of doing business, inclusive growth, research & innovation, and AI-based Solutions. The tax proposals and fiscal management approach laid out in the Union Budget 2023 will help attain the twin goals of reducing compliance and enhancing investor protection for a socially inclusive and economically sound nation," CS Manish Gupta, President, the ICSI said.
Allocation for higher education increased by 7.9% from Rs 40,828 crore (Budget Estimate) in 2022-23 to Rs 44,094 crore in 2023-24
— 157 new nursing colleges to be established
— 38,800 teachers, support staff recruitment for 740 Eklavya Model Residential Schools.
— Three new centres of excellence for AI in top educational institutions.
— Ministry of Education allocated Rs 1.12 lakh crore budget
While no new major sector-specific scheme was announced, Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said a National Digital Library will be set up for “children and adolescents.” However, no funds have been allocated for the library project in the 2023-24 budget and the National Digital University project, which was announced in 2022, also saw no separate allocation. Incidentally, the Centre had in 2016 launched the National Digital Library (NDL) pilot project under which IIT Kharagpur runs an online repository of texts and video lectures on various subjects ranging from humanities to sciences.
Read Sourav Roy Barman's report on the education budget.
The government today announced that the Children’s Book Trust and other sources will be encouraged to provide books and other material in regional languages. However, when it comes to the engineering sector, I am not in favour of this as this will create complete chaos in the system and negatively affect our USP in engineering education. In hard times like these, we need more unifying factors, rather than those that divide us.
— Former IIT Director
The outlay for PM Poshan has been increased by 13.3%, taking the allocation to Rs 11,600 crore from Rs 10,233 crore. While no new major sector-specific scheme was announced, Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said a National Digital Library will be set up for “children and adolescents” to provide a supply of good quality books at a time when students are trying to cope with the learning losses suffered during the pandemic.
This budget brings cheer to the teaching community as they will undergo training through innovative teaching methods, curriculum transformation, continuous professional development, and the implementation of ICT. The establishment of an additional 30 Skill India International Centers, offering cutting-edge programs in fields such as coding, AI, IOT, mechatronics, drones, and the enhancement of various soft skills, as announced in this budget, is a phenomenal initiative. The budget as a whole is a positive step towards the growth and advancement of vocational education within the education sector.
The plan of increasing medical colleges number and nursing colleges number is not really required at present. There are lot of medical and nursing colleges at the moment and instead of spending money there, we should enrich and empower the existing medical colleges. There should be major vacancy in government sectors for doctors and nurses. We require good teachers in already established medical colleges to get better doctors. Just spending money on buildings of medical colleges and not hiring professional is a wasteful activity," says Rohan Krishan, President, FAIMA.
University Grants Commission gets allocation of Rs 5,350 crore versus budget allocation of Rs 4,900 crore.
The Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman today announced that in the next three years, the Centre will recruit 38,800 teachers and support staff for the 740 model Eklavya Model Residential Schools which are serving 3.5 lakh tribal students.
PM Shri Schools which were announced in last year’s budget speech, but were not allocated any money, have been given Rs 4,000 crore this year.
Under PM Schools for Rising India or PM Shri, 14500 schools are expected to be upgraded to showcase components of the new National Education Policy 2020.
PM Poshan Shakti Nirma (earlier known as the Midday Meal Scheme) gets budget allocation of Rs 11,600 crore. Last year’s budget allocation of Rs 10,233 crore was increased (in the revised estimate) to RS 12,800 crore.
(Express photo)
Granted that Artificial Intelligence is going to be one of the biggest things in the future, and focused investments in AI are critical for keeping and creating jobs. However, launching new three centres of excellence for artificial intelligence is not the only reform needed to ensure that India moves up the ladder in IT sector. Opening institutes is easy, but sustaining them towards excellency is difficult.
Experts should learn from the IIIT experience as they have not been able to achieve the same level of excellency as IITs. It is important to study why did the IIT model work and then implement that in IIITs or the new institutions. Even the infrastructure required to make the new institutes competent enough to meet global standards is also not an easy task.
— Former IIT Director
(Image source: IIT Delhi)
Samagra Shiksha Abhiyan, which is the union government’s largest education scheme and the flagship programme for funding school education from pre-primary to higher secondary level, has been allocated the almost the same amount as last year - Rs 37,453 crore compared to Rs 37,383 crore (budget estimate) in 2022-23.
In the budget 2023, IITs allocated Rs 8791 crore this year, as opposed to Rs 7545 crore.
Allocation for higher education increased by 7.9% from Rs 40,828 crore (Budget Estimate) in 2022-23 to Rs 44,094 crore in 2023-24
Allocation for school education has increased by 8% from Rs 63,449 crore (Budget Estimate) in 2022-23 to Rs 68,804 crore in 2023-24
In the budget announcement today, Ministry of Education allocated Rs 1.12 lakh crore as opposed to 1.04 lakh crore last year. Department of School Education to get Rs 68,804 crore and Department of Higher Education allocated Ra 44,094 crore
-- 30 skill India centres to be set up across states
-- 100 labs for developing applications using 5g services will be set up in engineering institution
-- Centres of Excellence for artificial intelligence to be set up in top educational institutions
-- Centre will recruit 38,800 teachers and support staff for the 740 model Eklavya Model Residential Schools which are serving 3.5 lakh tribal students
-- Teachers training will be reenvisioned through innovative pedagogy, curriculum transaction
-- 157 new nursing colleges will be established in co-location with existing 157 medical colleges established since 2014.
-- Select facilities at ICMR labs will be made available for research to outsiders
-- A new programme to promote research and innovation in pharmaceuticals will be introduced
-- Dedicated multidisciplinary course for medical devices will be supported in existing institution
Indian education system has always complained of non-availability of quality teachers. The current impetus on recruiting large number of teachers and creating a sustainable teachers' training programme equipping them with multilateral skills will go a long way in improving the quality of education in Indian schools. The government must also create a performance management system where there is a hope of rising and a fear of falling for all teachers.
Recruiting teachers and providing them with relevant skills such that they can impart the right knowledge and skills will help in building employable youth in India.
(Inputs from Shantanu Rooj, Founder and CEO, TeamLease Edtech)
Sitharaman had allocated Rs 99,300 crore for education in 2020 — a hike of 4.6 per cent over Rs 94,855 crore in 2019. Then, in 2021, the Ministry of education got an allocation of Rs 93,224 crores, and Rs 1.04 lakh crore in 2022.
To realise the vision of 'Make AI in India' and 'Make AI Work for India' three centres of excellence for artificial intelligence will be set up in top educational institutions.
To skill youth for international opportunities, 30 Skill Indian International Centres will be set up across different states.
The digital ecosystem for skilling will be further expanded with the launch of a unified 'Skill India Digital Platform' for enabling demand based formal skilling, linking with employers including MSMEs and facilitating access to entrepreneurship scheme.
To provide stipend support to 47 lakh youths in 3 years, a direct benefit transfer under a pan-India national apprenticeship promotion scheme will be rolled out.
'It is probably the first time when the union budget witnessed mention of teacher training, capacity-building programs and a culture of reading. As an educationist, it is highly encouraging to see the budget's focus. The establishment of District Training Centres for educators will revolutionise both public and private school education across India. Setting up National Digital Library and Physical Libraries at ward and panchayat levels is like a dream come true. National Book Trust has been entrusted with developing a reading culture by publishing content in several regional languages,' said Jyoti Arora, Principal of Mount Abu Public School, Rohini, Delhi.
'The plan of increasing medical colleges number and nursing colleges number is not really required at present,' says FAIMA President, Rohan Krishnan. 'There are lot of medical and nursing colleges at the moment and instead of spending money there, we should enrich and empower the existing medical colleges. There should be major vacancy in government sectors for doctors and nurses.'
'We require good teachers in already established medical colleges to get better doctors. Just spending money on buildings of medical colleges and not hiring professional is a wasteful activity,' he added.
To build capacity of functionaries and professionals in the securities market, SEBI will be empowered to develop, regulate, maintain and enforce norms and standards for education in the National Institute of Securities Markets and to recognise a word of degrees, diplomas and certificates.
Lab grown diamonds is a technology and innovation driven energy driven sector with high employment potential. To encourage indigenous production of such diamonds, a research grant will be provided to one of the IITs for five years.
The digital ecosystem for skilling will be further expanded with the launch of a unified skill India digital platform for enabling demand based formal skilling, linking with employers including MSMEs and facilitating access to entrepreneurship schemes to provide stipend support to 47 lakh youths in three years. Direct benefit transfer under pan India National Apprenticeship promotion scheme will be rolled out.
To empower our youth, we have formulated the National Education Policy which is wide in scope, but one of our focuses is job training. In the PM Kaushal Vikaas Yoajna 4.0, industry partnership, an alignment of courses with needs of industry will be emphasised. The scheme will also cover new age courses for industry 4.0 like coding, AI, robotics, mechatronics IoT, 3D printing drones and other soft skills to skill youth for international opportunities, 30 skill India international centres will be set up across different states.
PM Kaushal Vikaas Yoajna 4.0 to be launched to skill the Indian youth in new age courses for indsutry 4.0 in several skills such as robotics, coding, drones and other soft skills.
The Indian Medical Association is expecting a 5 per cent allocation in the Union Budget. And, it should not be just for running expenses such as salaries but for infrastructure, research and better equipment.
The Covid crisis has amply demonstrated the importance of universal primary care in the public sector. Health Policy 2017 firmly focuses on primary care: If possible the Centre should upgrade and enhance these figures and appoint MBBS doctors in the 1.50 lakh wellness centres. The policy recommends that health centres be established on geographical norms apart from population norms. This would also necessitate upgradation of the existing sub-centres and reorienting PHCs.
A total of 100 labs will be set up in engineering institution with various authorities, regulators, banks and other business for developing applications using 5G services. To realise the new range of opportunities, business models and employment potential, the labs will cover, among others, applications such as smart classrooms, precision farming, intelligent transport systems and healthcare applications
This budget proposes a series of measures to unleash the potential of our economy, Centres of Excellence for artificial intelligence for realising the vision of 'Make AI in India and Make AI Work for India'. Three Centres of Excellence for artificial intelligence will be set up in top educational institutions. Leading industry players will partner in conducting interdisciplinary research, develop cutting edge applications and scalable problem solutions in the areas of agriculture, health, sustainable cities.
Under mission Karma Yogi, centres, states and the union territories are implementing capacity-building plans for civil servants. The government has also launched an integrated online training platform to provide continuous learning opportunities for lakhs of government employees to upgrade their skills and facilitate people centric approach.
Teachers training will be reenvisioned through innovative pedagogy, curriculum transaction, continuous professional development dipstick survey and iCT implementation. The district institute of education and training will be developed as vibrant institutes of excellence for this purpose.
Select facilities at ICMR labs will be made available for research to outsiders. A new programme to promote research and innovation in pharmaceuticals will be introduced. 157 new nursing colleges will be established in co-location with existing 157 medical colleges established since 2014.
Dedicated multidisciplinary course for medical devices will be supported in existing institution to ensure availability of skilled manpower for futuristic medical technologies and high-end manufacturing and research
In the next 3 years, Centre will recruit 38,800 teachers and support staff for the 740 model Eklavya Model Residential Schools which are serving 3.5 lakh tribal students.
To build a culture of reading and to make up for pandemic time learning loss, the National Book Trust, the Children's Book Trust, and other sources will be encouraged to provide and books and other material in regional languages, and in English to these physical libraries
National digital library for children and adolescents will be set up for facilitating availability of quality books across geographies, languages genres and levels and device agnostic, accessibility. States will be urged to setup physical libraries for them at Panchayat and all level to provide infrastructure for accessing the National Digital Library resources.
157 new nursing colleges will be established in core location, says Nirmala Sitharaman
This is Sitharaman’s fifth Budget presentation, and the last one for Modi government before the Lok Sabha polls next year.
Agriculture accelerator fund to be set up to encourage agri-startups by young entrepreneurs, especially in rural areas, says Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman
Fresh flows of funding and incentives must be made into programmes like Pradhan Mantri Gramin Digital Saksharta Abhiyaan and FutureSkills Prime. Implementation and audit taskforces must be built to accelerate and catalyze various ongoing broadband expansion and quality improvement projects. Investing in the advancement and enrichment of various technology and skilling platforms for students and educators like DIKSHA, NISHTHA, SWAYAM, etc. A detailed roadmap and resource allocation for escalating the implementation of the National Educational Technology Forum.
The ‘Manodarpan’ scheme by the Ministry of Education could be enriched with expert resources to better guide students with issues like addiction, self-healing, adjustment training, and short online courses, one-to-one online sessions with subsidized fees, etc.
Schools could be provided tax benefits or incentives for expanding their counselling services through counseling cells, career guidance services, or student awareness and sensitisation clubs.
Last year, Finance Minister announced that “For developing India specific knowledge in urban planning and design, and to deliver certified training in these areas, up to five existing academic institutions in different regions will be designated as centres of excellence. These centres will be provided endowment funds of Rs 250 crore each”.
In this regard, Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs (MoHUA) initiated the exercise to identify five academic institutions in different regions imparting knowledge in urban planning and design for their designation as Centres of Excellence (CoEs). Invitations were accepted from institutions in September 2022 along with a notification on the parameters set for the selection of the institution.
While talking to indianexpress.com, Anup Burman, a senior official at Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs (MoHUA) said, “We have received the nominations and are accessing the applications on set parameters. The implementation is underway.”
(Reported by Sakshi Saroha)
Sitharaman had allocated Rs 99,300 crore for education in 2020 — a hike of 4.6 per cent over Rs 94,855 crore in 2019. Then, in 2021, the Ministry of education got an allocation of Rs 93,224 crores, and Rs 1.04 lakh crore in 2022.
Vocational Education requires decisive effort from the government. The whole concept of vocational education will be relevant only when secondary-level education in the vocational space is linked to higher education. We would like the government to recognise and encourage a continuum of vocational education from the school level to Higher Education Institute through the 3 Year B.Voc (undergraduate programme) and postgraduate programme relating to the National Skills Qualifications Framework (NSQF) skill- level 4.5, 5.5,6.7 and 7. This will enhance employability.
With Edtech emerging as an important player in the education sector, companies are expecting a reduction in GST on education services, focus on the upskilling sector.