Interim Budget 2024: Rs 1.21 Lakh Cr for Education Sector; Rs 47000 Cr for HE; Schools get Rs 73,008 Cr

Finance Minister has once again allocated major share of her Education Budget to the Department of School Education with an allocation of Rs 73,008 crore, while Higher Education sector has been allocated Rs 47, 619 crore.

Union Finance Minister, Nirmala Sitharaman presenting the Interim Budget which is also her sixth Budget has allocated Rs 1,21,117 Crore for the Education Ministry, which was Rs 1.16 lakh crore in Budget 2023-24. There has been around a 10 per cent rise in allocation for the education sector.

The Department of School Education has been allocated Rs 73,008 crore, which was Rs 68,804 in the Budget 2023-24. The Higher Education Department has seen a marginal increase as it has been allocated Rs 47, 619 crores, which was Rs 44,090 in 2023-24 allocation.

The worry within the education sector revolves around the fact that the budget earmarked for education remains nearly unchanged as it is still under 3% of GDP in the Interim Budget 2024. It is noteworthy that the National Education Policy (NEP) advocates for an augmentation of the budgetary allocation to 6% of GDP for education. This year, no budget allocation is foreseen for the creation of new IITs, IIM or Central University.

There are also variations in the allocation of funds to institutions of national importance. The institutes that gain are IITs, NITs, Central Universities, IISERs with a marginal increase of about 5-7% in their annual budget. In 2024-2025, premier management institutions, IIMs once again lost out on the budget allocation, down by.

PMPOSHAN, PMSHRI, PMUSHA Gets Major Boost

Among centrally sponsored schemes Pradhan Mantri Poshan Shakti Nirman scheme, earlier known as the Mid-Day Meal Scheme has been allocated Rs 12,467 cr, another ambitious school reform scheme, PMSHRI Scheme (PM Schools for Rising India), a centrally sponsored scheme to establish over 14,500 PM SHRI Schools has been allocated Rs 6050 cr.

In the higher education sector, the Finance Minister this year has done away with funding under the Rashtriya Uchhatar Shiksha Abhiyan (RUSA) and has introduced Pradhan Mantri Uchchatar Shiksha Abhiyan (PMUSHA) with an allocation of Rs 1814.94 cr, to support colleges and universities.

The education sector was expecting a lot from the Modi Government from the Budget 2023 the education sector being one of the key focus areas of the second term of the Modi Government and this Budget being presented just before the General Election 2024.

Budget 2024: Allocation to School Education

In the Budget 2024-25, Rs 73,008 crore has been allocated for the School Education and Literary Department, which was from 68,480 crores in Budget 2023-24. The allocation under Sanagra Shiksha is nearly same this year will an allocation of Rs. 37,500 crore, which was Rs. 37,453.47 crore in 2023-24.

Funding for two major school chains run by the central government, Kendriya Vidyalaya Sangathan (KVS) and Navodaya Vidyalaya Samiti (NVS) have been allocated Rs. 9302.67 crore and Rs 5800 crore, respectively.

Allocation for IITs, Central Universities, IIMs, IIITs

In a bid to strengthen autonomous bodies, the Finance Minister increased the total allocation for institutions such as IITs, IIMs, Central Universities, NITs, IISERs, and IIITs from Rs 31000 crore to Rs 36000 crore in the Interim Budget 2024.

The allocation for Central and Deemed universities seems to be major gainers with Central universities being allocated Rs 15,928.00 cr, which was Rs 11,528 cr in Budget 2023-24. The allocation for Deemed universities has been increased by around 20% to Rs 596 crore from Rs 500 crore allocated last year.

While the funding for the Indian Institutes of Management has been again slashed by over 20 percent to Rs 221 crore, which was Rs 300 crore in Budget 2023-24. 

Funding for technical institutes like the IITs, NITs and IIITs has been increased to Rs 15880 crore, with IITs getting Rs 10,324 crore, NITs getting Rs 5040 crore while funding for IIITs have been reduced to Rs 515 crore from Rs 560 crore allocated in Budget 2023-24. 

National Education Mission: RUSA Funding abolished; PMUSHA Introduced

Under the National Education Mission, the Finance Minister this year has done away with funding under the Rashtriya Uchhatar Shiksha Abhiyan (RUSA) scheme which was allocated Rs 1500.00 crore last year, however, this year Pradhan Mantri Uchchatar Shiksha Abhiyan (PMUSHA) has been introduced with an allocation of Rs 1814.94 crore, to support colleges and universities.

In the Interim Budget, the Finance Minister has more than halved the funding for the University Grants Commission from Rs 5200 crores allocated last year to Rs 2500 crore this year. The funding for the All India Council for Technical Education (AICTE) has also been reduced from Rs 420 crore in Budget 2023-24 to Rs 400 crore in the interim budget.