S S Mantha
Chairman, AICTE on union Budget 2013-14

The budget is meant for ‘inclusive growth and sustainable development’ with a focus on social sectors-health and education. It is very pragmatic budget with feet on the ground.

Dilip Chenoy, CEO & MD, National Skill Development Corporation (NSDC)

The Finance Minister’s decision to set aside Rs 1,000 crore for a scheme to encourage youth to voluntarily enrol at skill development institutions and providing an incentive of Rs 10,000 to every individual who undergoes training, coupled with the recognition given to industry-led assessment and certification, would create an aspiration value for skills and contribute significantly to ongoing efforts to ensure that India is in a position to leverage its demographic dividend.

Including vocational institutes affiliated to the State Council of Vocational Training in the negative list of service tax would make skills training affordable and more accessible to people, particularly for those living at the bottom of the pyramid. Money being earmarked for skill development as part of the National Rural Livelihood Mission, National Urban Livelihood Mission, Border Area Development Programme Fund and several other funds, moreover, would encourage a larger number of training providers to establish outcome-linked sustainable skill development proposals nationwide.

The National Skill Development Corporation (NSDC) would like to compliment the Finance Minister for the government’s continued recognition and commitment to the skills cause in line with its goal of promoting growth that would lead to inclusive and sustainable development.

Pramod Sharma
Principal, Genesis Global School

The continuation of education cess as 3 percent will only help, if it is utilised for a specific need in education sector. I was hoping the focus to be more on teacher training so the students do not drop out and teachers are motivated to impart better education. The Government needs to introduce technology based learning in government schools. Since, private schools already have technology like smart boards, etc and the government schools cannot afford the same, this will increase the inequality in society.

Ramana Akula
CFO, Pearson India

It is overall a positive budget from the education sector standpoint – despite the expenditure management exercise the government has increased allocation to the education sector by 17 per cent. The education cess of 3 percent has been retained for the financial year 2013-14; this move will continue to promote the public spending in various education schemes like Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan. However, some expectations such as extension of tax sops provided to vocational education in agri sector to other streams of vocational education have not been met but nevertheless the budget of 2013-14 should provide a boost to the education sector and the overall economy largely due to serious measures to promote saving and investments in the economy.

Amit Gautam
Director, Technology Solutions and
Co-founder, Upside Learning

From the perspective of education and developing talent, it is very encouraging to see the commitment (financial and in principle) reflected in the budget. There is a clear case of investing significantly in building skills across the nation and the budget with its near 20% increase (from last year) for MHRD allocation and other proposals for RTE, medical education & research, or SSA has its heart in the right place for the matter. I believe a similar trend and focus on developing talent through training and education would percolate to corporate India. We see an increase in spend in training, skills development and overall talent management in organisations across scale and domains. For education, its a very good budget and just in time.

Sanjaya Sharma
CEO, TATA Interactive Systems

“The Union Budget 2013 looks very positive for the education sector, a prerequisite for any country’s growth and development. The Government’s allocation of Rs. 65,867 crore for the overall education sector and another one of Rs. 3,983 crore specifically for the primary education segment are indeed encouraging steps. Its allocation of Rs. 13,215 crore for Mid Day Meals in schools and the Rs. 17,700 crore for Integrated Child Development Services are other positive steps to achieve 100% literacy. I also reiterate that there is a need for a PPP model in the sector not just to execute the delivery but also deploy modern technology infrastructure across schools enabling rapid proliferation of world-class education.

Another positive announcement was the Rs. 1000 crore allocation for the national skill development fund. Every sector in India is challenged with severe crunch of skilled workforce and such initiatives will help achieve its target of skilling 50 million people in the 12th Plan period, including 9 million in 2013-14. But, the gap is also widening at the same time and there will be a need for around 50 crore skilled workers across sectors in India by 2022. The Govt & NSDC in particular should look at employing technology as a strategic partner to fast track and bridge this gap”.

Prashant Bhalla

“Keeping the current fiscal deficit scenario in mind, the budget this year appears to be a move towards a focused economic growth, provided the elements are well implemented. It is good to see that education has retained its importance where the government plans to continue taking initiatives for education as well as imparting skills to the youth.

Given the challenges we have, rise in expenditures at all levels is obvious but one should not divert from our focus and continue our efforts. Rise in allocations for HRD, SSA, RMSA seems to be a move that will bring benefits to the countrymen. Having said that, monitoring also needs equal attention to overcome obstacles and thereafter succeed in our missions.

It is a delight to see that government has taken initiatives for women like announcing Nirbhaya fund, taking steps for women upliftment which is equally a pulsating concern today and is important for achieving an inclusive growth.”