SFI Criticizes Union Budget 2025: Claims Government is Privatizing Education, Cutting Research Funds

The higher education budget, rising by just 5% from ₹47,619.77 crore to ₹50,077.95 crore, is seen as inadequate when adjusted for inflation, effectively negating any real increase in funding. Additionally, the budgetary share of higher education remains below 1% this year, with expenditure breakdowns painting an even bleaker picture.

The Students’ Federation of India (SFI) has strongly criticized the Union Budget 2025, alleging that the government is accelerating the privatization of education while cutting essential research funds. Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, in her eighth budget presentation, allocated ₹1.28 lakh crore for the education sector, but student groups and academic stakeholders have raised concerns over reductions in key areas, including higher education and research funding.

School and Higher Education Allocations

The budget for school education increased from ₹73,008 crore in 2024-25 to ₹78,572.10 crore in 2025-26, marking a rise of ₹5,564.10 crore. However, higher education saw a modest increase from ₹47,619 crore to ₹50,077.95 crore, an uptick of ₹2,458.95 crore, which, when adjusted for inflation, raises questions about its real impact.

Technical education emerged as a priority, with IITs and NITs receiving an additional ₹1,370 crore. However, IIMs faced a drastic 50% funding cut, while IISERs and Central Universities also witnessed reductions, raising concerns about the future of research in pure sciences.

School education saw a push toward digital transformation, with the announcement of 50,000 new Atal Tinkering Labs and broadband expansion for secondary schools. However, critics argue that this technological boost does not compensate for the underutilization of funds in the sector.

Concerns Over Nutrition and Early Childhood Education

As per the SFI, The budget allocation for the PM-Poshan scheme, which includes the mid-day meal initiative, saw a nominal increase from ₹12,467.39 crore to ₹12,500 crore. This translates to an increase of merely 5 paise per child, despite alarming malnutrition statistics. The Poshan Tracker Data for June 2024 revealed that 17% (2.7 crore) of Indian children are underweight, 36% are stunted, and 6% suffer from wasting.

A similar cut was noted in the Saksham Anganwadi scheme, sparking concerns over the government’s commitment to tackling severe malnutrition.

Higher Education Budget Fails to Address Inflation Impact

The higher education budget, rising by just 5% from ₹47,619.77 crore to ₹50,077.95 crore, is seen as inadequate when adjusted for inflation, effectively negating any real increase in funding. Additionally, the budgetary share of higher education remains below 1% this year, with expenditure breakdowns painting an even bleaker picture.

Mayukh Biswas, General Secretary of the Students' Federation of India (SFI), criticized the government’s approach, stating, “The government has allocated ₹20,000 crore for a private-sector-driven Research, Development, and Innovation initiative while public research schemes have witnessed a drop of 7.89% from ₹355 crore to ₹327 crore. This reflects a shift toward privatization at the cost of public research.”

Cuts in Research and Academic Funding

The budget also saw a major cut in research and academic spending. The World Class Institutions scheme, aimed at developing “affordable world-class academic and research facilities,” faced a drastic 73% reduction in funding from ₹1,800 crore to ₹475.12 crore.

Furthermore, there was a notable shift in focus towards the Indian Knowledge Systems initiative, which saw an increase from ₹10 crore to ₹50 crore. Critics argue this move promotes a “Sanskritized version of pseudo-science and distorted history” over serious academic and research funding.

Infrastructure and Loan Repayments for Universities

Despite claims of additional infrastructure investment in IITs, the capital expenditure for IITs saw a 7% reduction, falling from ₹11.06 crore in 2024-25 to ₹10.27 crore in 2025-26. This comes at a time when infrastructure across IITs, IIMs, and Central Universities is in urgent need of attention.

Meanwhile, the University Grants Commission (UGC) faced a 47% cut in funding compared to 2023-24. Additionally, over 3% of total grants to Central Universities will be directed toward repaying Higher Education Financing Agency (HEFA) loans, reflecting an increasing dependence on private capital. The share of HEFA loans in Central Universities’ budgets has risen from ₹372 crore in 2024-25 to ₹462 crore in 2025-26, raising concerns about autonomy and financial sustainability.

Privatization and Commodification of Education

Critics argue that the budget accelerates the National Education Policy (NEP) 2020’s push toward privatization. With public universities facing cuts, an increasing share of educational funding is being directed toward private institutions and industry-driven research. This shift, experts warn, could make quality education more inaccessible to marginalized communities, deepening the inequality in higher education.

While the Union Budget 2025 presents an increase in overall education funding, deeper scrutiny reveals a troubling pattern of privatization, research cuts, and underwhelming support for public institutions. The shift in focus towards private-sector-driven initiatives, at the expense of public universities and research programs, raises serious concerns about the long-term future of India’s education system.

Read More:

• Union Budget 2025: Nirmala Sitharaman Allocates ₹1.28 Lakh Crore for Education; IITs See Surge, IIMs Face 50% Cut
• Union Budget 2025: 50,000 Atal Tinkering Labs, 6,500 New IIT Seats, 10,000 MBBS Seats and More Announced for Education
• School Dropout Decline to 1.9% for Primary, 5.2% for Upper Primary, 14.1% for Secondary: Economic Survey 2024-25