Press Release
Shubhika Rathi
The IMPRI Center for the Study of Finance and Economics (CSFE), IMPRI, Impact and Policy Research Institute, New Delhi, hosted an interactive panel discussion on the topic “Education, S&T, R&D and Union Budget 2024-25” on 26th July 2024, under IMPRI 5th Annual Series of Thematic Deliberations and Analysis of Union Budget 2024-25, as part of IMPRI #WebPolicyTalk.
The program on “Education, S&T, R&D and Union Budget 2024-25”, Chaired by Prof Sachidanand Sinha, Visiting Professor, IMPRI; Former Professor, Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU), New Delhi, discussed the critical side of the funding structure towards education sector. The session started by looking at some previous and current budgetary and revised allocation to the sector.
Prof. Anita Rampal, Former Dean, Faculty of Education, University of Delhi, discussed the manifestos of different parties and data from the Economic Survey of India. She highlighted that expenditure on education by both union and state governments has declined from 2.9% to 2.7% of GDP and from 10.7% to 9.2% of their social welfare budgets over the years. She noted the increasing role of non-state actors in education through philanthropy and corporate social responsibility.
Prof. Rampal raised concerns about the implications of privatization, viewing education as an input-output model that fosters unhealthy competition and hampers actual learning. She pointed out that the new educational policy’s focus on vocational education from grade 3 could lead to segregation of children based on their parental professions, further widening the gap between rich and poor. She also addressed the critical issues of digitalization and the Academic Bank of Credentials.
Prof Binod Khadria, Former Professor, Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU), New Delhi, mentioned that Education, S&T, R&D all are connected to average productivity of labor and it should be measured in terms of purchasing power parity of a dollar per hour per person to have a global comparison. Drawing comparisons he mentioned that the budget for education is just one-fourth of what allocated to defense and asks a poignant question: Is this allocation enough if we dream towards Viksit Bharat by 2047?
He mentioned how the UGC has been slashed by 60% reduction in their expenditure and speculations regarding reallocating these funds to their coalition partners have been persistent. His major concern was regarding the cut in education budget and boost to unproductive sectors, money from a few unproductive sectors could’ve been reallocated to their coalition partner. He gave an overlook of the demand and supply model of the education sector and focused on training of teachers and importance of census.
Prof. Nalin Bharti, Professor, Department of Humanities and Social Sciences, IIT Patna, and Visiting Senior Fellow, IMPRI, questioned the government’s targets given the current allocation structure. He stressed that investment in R&D, crucial for long-term outcomes, remains significantly lower than the global average. Prof. Bharti emphasized the need for India to become self-sufficient in electronics, noting the budget’s focus on privatization in R&D and emerging technologies, which has proven successful in other countries.
Prof. Mona Khare, Professor and Head, Department of Educational Finance, National Institute of Educational Planning and Administration (NIEPA), New Delhi, criticized the unsustainability of the current budget structure and the lack of incentivization for the major pillars of Viksit Bharat, namely health and education. She raised concerns about the government’s promotion of education loans and the implications for students. Prof. Khare highlighted the positive intervention of CSR funds allocated towards internships but noted that many companies still lack concrete CSR policies, and higher education institutions suffer from inadequate resource mobilization, creating a significant gap between industry and education. She also pointed out that the social science and development sector in research has been overlooked.
Prof. Saumen Chattopadhyay, Professor and Chairperson, Zakir Husain Centre for Educational Studies, JNU, discussed the three critical components of education: skills, the role of research, and positioning the Indian Knowledge System in the global academic realm. He highlighted the government’s focus on establishing India as a leader in the space sector, evidenced by substantial public and private sector funding. Prof.Chattopadhyay expressed concerns about the public character of education being compromised and the increasing differentiation due to inadequate and competitive allocation. He also addressed issues in higher education, such as institutional autonomy, the public-private divide, and disparities between central and state funding.
The session concluded by discussion of the panelists on some poignant issues raised and remarks of Dr Y. Suresh Reddy, Director, SRF Foundation, Gurgaon, on how India has to go beyond the current system. Panelists highlighted the importance of positive externalities, noting that fostering competition requires adequate funding, which is currently lacking in India. The session ended with a vote of thanks from the chair, who emphasized on the importance of allocating 6% of GDP towards the education sector.
IMPRI’s 5th Annual Series of Thematic Deliberations and Analysis of Union Budget 2024-25
IMPRI’s 5th Annual Series of Thematic Deliberations and Analysis of Union Budget 2024-25
Watch the event at IMPRI #Web Policy Talk
Acknowledgement- The article is written by Shubhika Rathi, Research Intern at IMPRI, pursuing Bachelor’s in Economics at Symbiosis School of Economics.
