Presenting her eighth Union Budget, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman announced several upgrades for the education sector with five new IITs, 50,000 Atal Tinkering Labs in government schools in the next five years and five National Centre of Excellence for Skilling. The total Budget allocation for the education sector is more than Rs 1.28 lakh crore.
The focus is on AI-focused initiatives as the government announced the establishment of a Centre of Excellence in Artificial Intelligence for Education with a total investment of Rs 500 crore. Academicians and students weigh in the “push” towards technology-driven education, research and outcome-based incentives in the Union Budget 2025.
Guru Nanak Dev University Vice Chancellor (VC) Dr Karamjeet Singh said the focus on Artificial Intelligence (AI) driven research in education was a must now. He said, “The time is right, but ethical AI-based research is the key word here. The scope of the AI in education is endless. We have to push for value-based AI tools that merge global concepts with Indian education system. Also, these steps will increase the scope of employment for students.”
District Education Officer Harbhagwant Singh said, “Atal Tinkering Labs are access points for students for research and innovation-based education. We already have three labs in government schools of the district. These labs give a push to practical and innovation-based learning of science and technology. This is a step towards making quality school education accessible to all.”
Tanveer, an undergraduate student of DAV College, said, “Technical education and skill development must go hand in hand. The government has given an encouraging sign towards job generation with the MSME and skill development incentives. Incentives for start- ups will encourage young people to become self-reliant rather than look for jobs. Also, the increase in number of technical education institutions like IITs and IIMs is a welcome step.”
Sanjh, another student of DAV College, said, “AI-based courses will be now introduced on a large scale giving students better options and scope in technical education.