Education budget increased over 100%

Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal’s vision of investing in the welfare of citizens was seen through their budget which paid emphasis on key aspects of health and education.

 In the Rs 42,000 crore budget, about 25 per cent has been allocated towards education which makes it around Rs 10,000 crore. This is 106 per cent more than the previous financial year’s allocation which was at Rs 2,219 crore.

The amount will be used to improve the educational infrastructure, training of teachers and developing new apprenticeship schemes among students. More than 8000 classrooms and 54 model schools are being built with an objective that one class would not contain more than 50 students. 

The main view of increasing the budget is to improve the quality of government schools and to bring them at par with the education provided in the private schools that is out of reach for many due to the fee structure and various barriers which prevent learning opportunities.

The Delhi government has also allocated a sizable amount for installation of CCTV’s in the classrooms of schools which come under them, to ensure transparency, accountability and security for the staff and students.

Delhi government also has tried to enhance the skills of the students under the apprenticeship scheme where an investment amount of Rs 310 crores is allocated for development of skills among students. According to the figure, more than 2.5 lakh students pass out of class 12 every year in which 1.25 lakh students are not able to get admission in the colleges. 

The Delhi government has ensured that by developing skills among students, their growth is not stopped because of lack of opportunities and financial resources. The Delhi Government also focuses on the benefit of teachers and they have committed that in the coming years, there would be an emphasis on improving the financial condition of teachers and also aid their training development. The increase in education budget is a step in this regard.

The AAP government has committed that by improving the educational infrastructure, the objective to provide autonomy to school managing committee, whose powers mostly remain on paper will be involved in the making of the development plan of the school.

The Delhi government’s investment in education will be used in improving sanitation facilities and ensure high-quality infrastructure like lights, fans and computers in each classroom. The Delhi government maintains that the amount allocated towards education is not expenditure but an investment towards creating better future.