Budget 2020-21: There’s too little for education sector

There was too little for education sector in the Budget, said Sumeet Jain, co-founder, Yocket edtech start-up. “The FM did emphasise on education and employability, but there was no clarity on how it will achieve employability,” he said, adding while online courses is a good step, why is it limited to only top 100 institutes? “The FM didn’t mention anything about education abroad or loans. But FDI in education sector could be a big game-changer,” Jain adds.

Budget allocation is good news

The whopping Rs 99,300 crore for education sector is good news, said Abhishek Kumar, regional director, Onvu Learning. “The FM also announced positive reforms including Study in India scheme, establishment of Police Academy and Forensic Science, and integration of medical institutes with district hospitals. Perhaps all these reforms will go a long way by including video-analytics-based edtech solutions to them as well,” added Kumar.

Welcome the intent in this Budget

The Rs 99,300 crore allocation for education sector is appreciable, said Rupal Dalal, ED, JD Institute of Fashion Technology. “I welcome the intent in this Budget of a new India that attempts to make the country a leading destination for higher studies in the world, as well as the place for cutting-edge innovation,” she added. “Being an educationist, I welcome the novel educational policy implemented by the government of India.”

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A forward-thinking Budget for skilling

“I call it forward-thinking Budget,” said Sanjay Goyal, business head, TimesJobs. The Rs 6,000 crore to boost internet connectivity is big news for internet, e-commerce industries. “The announcement of a single investment clearance window for entrepreneurial projects will boost the ‘Startup India’ mission,” he added.

The impetus is on online learning

It is great to see the impetus on online learning as the medium of choice for skilling, said Mohan Lakhamraju, founder & CEO, Great Learning. “We welcome the move to allow top 100 NIRF institutions to offer degree-online courses. As an edtech firm that has helped thousands of professionals upskill successfully via the online route, I believe an initiative like this can play a disruptive role in making quality higher education accessible to everyone,” he said.