Budget 2022: Here's what education sector has to say about proposed initiatives

A digital university to be built on a 'hub-and-spoke' model and expansion of 'one class-one TV channel' programme through 200 channels for providing supplementary education in regional languages in school are among the major initiatives in the education sector proposed by Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman in her budget speech on Tuesday.

Presenting the budget for 2022-23, the finance minister acknowledged that due to the pandemic-induced closure of schools, children, particularly in the rural areas, and those from Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes, and other weaker sections, have lost almost two years of formal education.

Here's what education sector people has to say about the proposed initiatives

Ujwala Chakradeo (VC, SNDT)

The Union Budget 2022-23 can be given marks of 8/10. This budget has given the emphasis on long-due rural development through the agricultural sector, agriculture universities, digitization of land reform, the incentive to organic farming and start-ups, etc. Agriculture University's curriculum would be changed to meet the demands of natural, zero-cost, and organic farming, as well as modern agriculture.

'One class one TV Channel' to compensate for the loss of learning caused by the pandemic will also be very helpful mainly to rural students who could not obtain the benefit of online teaching-learning in absence of access to digital devices. The PM eVidya Scheme will be expanded from 12 to 200 channels to provide extra learning in regional languages for all grades 1 to 12. Quality e-content will be created in a variety of ways. Teachers will be trained to apply more effective e-learning outcomes.

Five Excellence Centers would be established, each with an Rs. 250 crore endowment fund, for Urban Planning courses that will aid in the development of the urban sector. SNDT Women’s University, Mumbai aspires to undertake one such centre. Being a town planner I was pleased to see the consideration given to safe and green urban spaces.

Starting of digital University is a welcome idea. A digital university will be developed and launched with the goal of providing students with access to world-class quality education. However, the budget promoting digitization in the education sector has not given any incentive in terms of increased budgetary allocation for the sector. This was expected in light of the implementation of the National Education Policy – 2020.

Integrated women and children development will certainly take place through Mission Vatsalya and Saksham Anganwadi and Poshan. Restructuring of the skill development programme through Digital DESH e-portal will assist the youth in skilling, upskilling, and reskilling. This is the need of the hour as the country has to take advantage of the demographic dividend.

Almost everyone had expected some concession in personal Income Tax and EMI on housing loans but the Budget remained silent in this part which was a small disappointment on the personal front. There has not been anything to boost the morale of the depressed real estate sector which was also one of the expectations of this budget. Overall the budget has been a balanced budget where all the sectors are considered and given some incentive for development.

Dr Srinivasan R Iyengar (Director - Jamnalal Bajaj Institute of Management Studies, JBIMS

The Education sector had high hopes for Budget 2022 given that in the last two budgets the allocations for the education sector had been falling. The announcements in the budget so far seem to be not up to the expectations.

Some of the initiatives in this budget like the focus on digital education, creation of centres of excellence, job creation, a boost for agricultural universities, skill development programmes are heart-warming.

During the last two years of the pandemic, certain shortcomings of the education sector have been exposed. Hybrid learning is here to stay. Both, the teachers and students have realized the convenience and efficacy of online education. Another aspect of online education is that substantial funding is required for developing e-content. In this context, the focus on digital education is welcome. However, the task of making every school and college digitally capable is a mammoth task and the government has to raise some to help educational institutions in this area.

The traditional institutes of higher education need special support from the government as they are competing against private institutions and the edtech sector which is flush with private funding.

If the country has to reap the benefit of the demographic dividend, we have to go beyond the incremental approach and rethink the ways to finance the development of the education sector.

The score for Budget 2022 is 8/10 because I believe that the Budget is a step in the right direction and aims to make changes in the system. It is a balanced and growth friendly budget.