Deputy CM and Finance Minister Bhatti Vikramarka presented the interim Budget, where 7.7% of the total Budget was allocated for education.
The 2024-2025 interim Budget sees an increase of 12 percent from the previous year's ₹19,093 crore Budget. (Commons)
The Congress-led government in Telangana has proposed a budget of ₹21,389 crore for the Education Department for 2024-2025 — an increase of 12.02 percent from the previous year’s ₹19,093 crore Budget — to develop the state as an “education hub”.
This includes ₹1,546 crore for the construction of BC Residential Welfare schools, ₹1,000 crore for the construction of SC Residential Welfare schools, ₹250 crore for the construction of ST Residential Welfare schools, and ₹500 crore for all the government-run universities.
Deputy Chief Minister and Finance Minister Mallu Bhatti Vikramarka presented the Revanth Reddy-led government’s first vote-on-account or interim budget in the Legislative Assembly on Saturday, 10 February, where 7.7 percent of the total outlay of ₹2.75 lakh crore was allocated for education.
In 2023-2024, the erstwhile BRS government allocated 6.7 percent of the total budget to the Education Department.
In comparison, Karnataka’s Congress government allocated almost 11 percent — ₹37,587 crore — of the Budget on education in 2023-24.
Noting that school education is on its priority list, the Telangana government has proposed ₹500 crore to establish Telangana public schools on a pilot basis in every mandal, to be equipped with “international standards”.
“We will introduce new courses in colleges so that students’ employability levels improve and they become better equipped to compete with the rest of the world,” said Vikramarka.
A total of 65 government-run Industrial Training Institutes (ITIs) in the state will be upgraded in a bid to uplift the quality of technical education in the state, he added.
“We propose to do it by partnering with industry leaders in the field of technology. Many prestigious companies have already expressed their interest to work with the government in this regard. A team of our officials visited Karnataka and Tamil Nadu, and studied the models being implemented there. They have proposed suitable model for our state,” the Finance Minister announced.
He added that new courses will be introduced at the aforementioned ITIs to train the students, and that their intake capacity will also be enhanced.
Bhatti Vikramarka also announced an allocation of ₹500 crore to revamp the infrastructure in all state-run universities, including Osmania University.
The state government also announced an initiative to build a skill university. “A team of officials visited Gujarat, Delhi, and Odisha recently to study the skill universities in those states. A suitable model for our state is being developed,” the Deputy Chief Minister said.
The Telangana government announced ₹1,000 crore for the construction of new school buildings for Scheduled Castes, and ₹250 crore for the Scheduled Tribes.
It also plans to install solar panels in these schools and the power charges, which will be saved, will be utilised for the benefit of the students.
For the higher education of students belonging to the SC and ST communities, the state government has announced the establishment of two MBA colleges under the Residential Schools Society.
“Proposals in this regard have already been submitted to the All India Council for Technical Education (AICTE) for necessary permissions. We have taken steps to complete the process of recruitment of teaching staff in residential schools and soon, the residential schools will be equipped with faculty,” Vikramarka said.
Announcing plans for the Backward Classes (BC) community, the Deputy Chief Minister said that ₹1,546 crore has been allocated for the construction of BC residential schools buildings.
“Our commitment and plans for the welfare of the BCs has been elaborated in the BC Declaration. The government, in the past, made heavy allocations in the budget for the welfare of the BCs but in reality, the funds were never released and spent. They deliberately misled the BCs, which is very unfortunate. Our government’s policy will be transparent and we will ensure that the allocated funds are actually spent in the given time frame,” the Deputy Chief Minister said, taking an obvious dig at the previous KCR-led BRS government.
Vikramarka added, “The previous government did not release funds under the fee reimbursement programme on time. Consequently, many students could not get their education certificates in time, forcing them to forgo best opportunities for higher education and employment. Our government is committed to implementing the fee reimbursement programme in a systematic way. Along with fee reimbursement, scholarships to SC, ST, BC, and Minority students would also be paid on time.”
Underscoring the need to give priority to the BC community, he said that the Revanth Reddy-led government would also secure additional funds from the Union government under Savitribai Phule Abhyudaya Yojana scheme. “Our government will ensure that BC scholarships are given on a regular and timely basis,” he reiterated.
He added, “We will also provide scholarships for students planning to study abroad under the Overseas Education Scheme. Our government’s idea is to enable students from the Backward Classes and weaker sections to concentrate on their studies and get good employment, without worrying about the financials. We promise to construct buildings for BC hostels, which are now housed in private buildings.”
The state government has proposed ₹8,000 crore for BC welfare.
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