Hostels a Plus, But Overall Vision And Funds ‘Inadequate’

Hyderabad: The Union Budget proposal to build girls hostels in every district was welcomed but experts raised concerns over what they said was a lack of clear vision to achieve Viksit Bharat 2047 goals.Telangana Council of Higher Education chairman Prof. V Balakista Reddy called saw the proposal to build girls hostels as a positive step as the country is focusing on girls’ education. He also welcomed the proposal to set up infrastructure facilities at four astrophysics institutes.Telangana Education Commission member Prof. P.L. Vishweshwar Rao said the Budget outlined measures to make foreign education cheaper but did not address strengthening higher education.Prof. Rao said the target was to increase access to higher education from the current 28 per cent to 50 per cent by 2035, which would require a 22 per cent increase in allocations over the next 10 years. Without a substantial boost in higher education funding, he asked, how could this target be achieved.The proposal to set up a girls hostels in every district was welcome, Prof. Rao said, but it would be inadequate considering the large population and geographical spread of districts. He also noted what he called a broader vision for both school and higher education, and investment allocation was crucial.Education expert Satish Pendyala said the Budget’s core thrust was on linking education with employment and industry, especially through five proposed university townships near major industrial and logistics corridors.According to United Teachers Federation state president Chava Ravi said the “slight increase” in allocations for the education sector would not suffice to meet the targets of the National Education Policy and universalisation of education. Considering rising prices, the funds allocated for the mid-day meal scheme and Samagra Shiksha were inadequate, he noted. The federation said the allocations were nowhere close to the National Education Commission’s recommendation of allocating 10 per cent of the Budget and 6 per cent of the GDP to education.



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