Page 64 - EW November 2023

Cover Story

Squeezing resources for public education

Expenditure outlay Budgeted Savings Comment
2023-24 (Rs. lakh crore) (Rs. lakh crore)
Establishment expenses 7.44 0.89 Estb. expenditure is too high (15.35 percent of total
buget expenditure). Reduce to 12 percent
Fertilizer, petroleum & 3.75 0.19 Reduce by better targeting, reducing gold plating etc
food subsidy (5 percent)
Non-merit middle class ____ 3.02 Non-merit subsidies are estimated at 10 percent of GDP
subsidies (Centre plus
states) — higher education, (Rs. 301.75 lakh crore). Prune by 1 percent
electricity, piped water, etc
Interest payout 10.79 1.08 Reduce by retiring public debt through additional
public sector privatisation (10 percent)
Defence 4.33 0.22 Defence services can cut expenditure by 5 percent and
_________ ________ make it up by undertaking civil construction projects
Sub-total: 26.31 5.40
Budget 2023-24 (Receipts) Budgeted Savings Comment
Corporate tax 9.23 0.09 1 percent additional remedial education tax
Income tax 9.01 0.06 Rs.1,000 flat tax on all IT payers (58.3 million)
PSE privatisation 0.50 1.50 Raise this amount by accelerating PSE privatisation
_________ ________
Sub-total: 18.74 1.65
Grand total: 7.05
EW recommendations for developing human capital
1) Invest Rs.1.69 lakh crore for libraries, laboratories and lavatories in deficient government schools
2) Invest additional Rs.1 lakh crore in ICDS/anganwadis
3) Invest additional Rs.1 lakh crore in national primary health care centres network
4) Invest additional Rs.1 lakh crore in digital infrastructure in public schools
5) Invest additional Rs.1 lakh crore in skilling centres & Atal Tinkering labs
6) Invest additional Rs.1.36 lakh crore in making 20 public universities world-class

know-how drain, requires an organ- to stem the outflow of the country’s dustry within the academy and media.
ised programme of substantial initial brightest and best talent from India. On the contrary addle-headed lefties
research grants and lab facilities con- First, it requires unambiguously driven by envy rather than ideology,
ceptualised for outstanding diaspora reviving and encouraging the sub- continue to dominate the public dis-
scientists and researchers in the West continent’s native spirit of private en- course and trash successful businesses
to induce them to return to India, and terprise with the State playing the role and industry.
sustained support thereafter from gov- of facilitator — guide by the side rather Nor despite authoring the industry
ernment and industry. The model of than sage on stage. But the neta-babu liberalization and deregulation initia-
such a detailed programme to lure ex- brotherhood which has become ac- tive of 1991, has socialism lost its ap-
ceptional diaspora scientists and re- customed to lording it over business, peal in the Congress party. De facto
searchers back home was successfully commerce and industry, isn’t likely to Congress leader Rahul Gandhi con-
initiated by China in the new millen- voluntarily step aside and assume the tinues to bash big business and the
nium. The success of this programme proposed new role. Yet in both major Adani Group in particular, cavalierly
is behind the awesome research and political parties — BJP and Congress unaware that to attain annual double
technical capability that the People’s — there are pro business and private digit GDP growth rates and emerge as
Republic has built up in the past few enterprise leaders. They need public, a respected super-power in this cen-
decades. It needs to be studied and especially middle class support. Un- tury, India needs a thousand Adanis
replicated. fortunately despite the clear failure and Ambanis. Clearly he is unrepen-
Meanwhile there is no option but of India’s Left lurch into inorganic tant about the misery that the Nehru-
to initiate root and branch ideological, socialism, there’s little support for Gandhi dynasty has heaped on two
governance and education reforms, private enterprise in business and in- generations of post-independence

64 EDUCATIONWORLD NOVEMBER 2023