Budget 2021 Utterly Disregards the Education Catastrophe Inflicted by COVID-19
Is it not amply clear that the fall-out from such persistent neglect of education is bound to create serious social and economic problems with long lasting effects?
Students wearing protective face masks are seen inside a classroom of a government-run school after authorities ordered schools to reopen voluntarily for classes 9 to 12, in Gurugram, India October 15, 2020. Photo: Reuters/Anushree Fadnavis
Education02/Feb/2021
âNo surprisesâ seems to be the hashtag for this yearâs budget, as echoed by the giants of Indian industry on TV channels, as they heave sighs of relief and project hope for an economic recovery. No surprises, because the government proceeded on a mostly business as usual plan, reiterating its commitment to privatisation â albeit more openly â focussing on incentives to corporates, including labour reforms, no COVID-19 cess and plenty of other platitudes amoun
Tribune News Service
New Delhi, February 1
Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman today made a higher allocation of Rs 93,224.31 crore (in Budget Estimate 2021-22) towards the Education Ministry as com
Budget: Setting up a central university in Leh, 100 new Sainik schools & Higher Education Commission of India, increasing collaboration with foreign institutions,strengthening over 15,000 schools as per new NEP
Budget to reset the economy
Budget to reset the economy
COVID-19 pandemic impacted Indian economy where revenues of and expenditures by the Government during the current fiscal saw a huge mismatch and where almost all sectors of the economy barring our agriculture suffered enormously, presenting a Budget under such circumstances cannot be anything less than a ticklish job and how much the Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman succeeded in her efforts towards giving a push to economic activities with emphasis on generating demand, encouraging consumption and creating job opportunities can well be perused in the Budget presented by her for the fiscal 2021-22. This Budget has the distinction of being the first ever digital Union Budget where while fight against the COVID-19 pandemic would continue, various measures , projections and allocations were made to primarily counter the effects of its impact, at the same time keeping the goals of growth and progress of the economy duly focusse
The education sector witnessed a major cut in outlay in the Union Budget for 2021-22 amid substantial dip in allocation to a scheme that aimed to improve school infrastructure and teaching.
The allocation to school and higher education in the budget presented by finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Monday was Rs 93,224 crore against the budgeted estimate of Rs 99,311 crore in 2020-21, which was revised to Rs 85, 089 crore. This is for the first time that the education ministry’s budget witnessed a cut in the allocated amount in the recent years.
Allocation to a scholarship scheme which aims to promote enrolment and reduce dropout of girls belonging to Scheduled Caste (SC) and Scheduled Tribe (ST) communities in secondary schools also plummeted.