Education Budget Under Modi Government In Last 10 Years

As per the Education Policy which was introduced in 2020, 6% percent of the GDP has to be spent on education. Contrary to the expectation, the allocation for education for the fiscal year 24-25 was 7 percent lower than the revised estimates for the current fiscal.

Over the past two financial years, education has seen a massive increase in funds allocated towards increasing outreach, skill development and improving the quality of education.

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Here is a look back on India’s education budget highlights over the past decade.

Budget 2014

In the 2014 Union Budget, Rs 68,728 was allocated for education. The budget was focused on addressing teacher shortage through training programmes and introduced skill programmes for the first time. Rs 30 crore was allocated for the School Assessment programme, Rs 500 crore for Pandit Madan Mohan Malviya New Teachers Training Programme to address a 1.2 million teacher shortage at the time. Rashtriya Uchchatar Shiksha Abhiyan allocation increased from Rs 400 crore to Rs 2,200 crore

Budget 2015

The education sector received Rs 68,968 crore and thus there has been an increase of o.34 percent. The budget shifted its focus to higher education, including opening new government institutes and introducing new education loan schemes. Rs 26,855 crore was allocated for the Department of Higher Education and Rs 42,219 crore for the Department of School Education and Literacy.

Budget 2016

The 2016 budget allocated Rs 72,394 crore for education, marking a 4.9 percent increase from the previous year. This fiscal year’s budget focussed on strengthening higher education and establishing India as a global education hub.
School education received Rs 43,554 crore (three percent increase), and higher education saw Rs 28,840 crore (7.3 percent increase).

Budget 2017

Rs 79,685.95 crore was allocated for the education sector in the Union Budget 2017. There was an increase of 9.9 percent from the previous year. Later it was revised to Rs 81,868 crore. From the initial allocation, Rs 46,356.25 went to the school sector, leaving Rs 33,329.7 for higher education. The budget was prioritized for advancing education quality. During the fiscal year, the National Testing Agency was established and more skill development initiatives were introduced.

Budget 2018

The Union Budget allocated Rs 1.38 trillion for health, education and social security. In this Rs 83, 626 crore, a 3.8 percent increase over the revised estimate budget 2017, went towards education—the 2018 budget aimed at a digital transformation in education, attracting foreign students and job creation. Additionally, the Budget focused on strengthening agriculture, rural development, health, and education.

Budget 2019

Rs 94,853.64 crore was allocated to the education sector in the 2019 budget, reflecting a 13.4 percent increase from the previous budget in 2018. The amount allocated was also made up of three percent of the central government’s estimated expenditure for the financial year. It mainly emphasized on imparting new-age skills in areas like artificial intelligence and robotics, as well as skill training.

Budget 2020

With an increase of 5 percent from the previous budget, an amount of Rs 99,300 crore was allocated with an additional Rs 3,000 crore embarked for skill development. It mainly focused on drawing investment into the education sector and implementing the National Educational Policy 2020. Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) and External Commercial Borrowings (ECB) were introduced to education to boost global collaboration.

The Draft National Education policy which was released in May 2019 proposed a six percent of GDP as the minimum expenditure on education.

Budget 2021

The education ministry was allocated Rs 93,224, a 2.1 percent increase from the prior year’s expenditure. It made up 2.67 percent of the government’s estimated spending for the financial year.

This year’s budget aligned with the National Education Policy’s reforms, which also reaffirms the allotment of six percent of the GDP to education. This involves an increase in the outreach of both secondary and higher education through the establishment of new schools and a central university in Leh.

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Budget 2022

The education budget witnessed a substantial increase to Rs 1.04 trillion, marking a rise of 18.5 percent increase over the previous year.

However, certain scholarship schemes, like the National Scheme for Incentives to Girls, witnessed reduced or no allocations.

The overall allocation in the year formed three percent of the government’s estimated expenditure. It mainly focussed on Kendriya Vidyalaya Sangathan and Navodaya Vidyalaya Samiti and providing quality education.

Budget 2023

The Ministry of education received an allocation of Rs 1,12,899 crore, reflecting a 13 percent increase. This will make up to 2.9 percent of the central government’s overall estimated expenditure for fiscal year 2024.

The Budget aimed at recruiting over 38,000 teachers for Ekalavya Schools, introducing dedicated research programs, establishing new research centres, and revising the apprenticeship scheme.