India Trails SAARC Nations in Education Spending, Urged to Boost Investments

India's expenditure on education has lagged some of its SAARC peers, says the latest parliamentary panel report. India's spending on education is 4.12% of GDP in 2021-22, falling behind Bhutan (7.47%) and Maldives (4.67%). This is below the 6% mark set by the National Education Policy (NEP) 2020, triggering questions about the nation's commitment towards education development.

 

The parliamentary education standing committee has appealed to the Union education ministry to make extra efforts to meet the 6% GDP spending target. The committee, which is led by Congress' Rajya Sabha member Digvijaya Singh, urged the need for more funding from the Ministry of Finance in order to consolidate India's public school system.

 

India's expenditure on education has been inconsistent in the past, oscillating between 3.87% and 4.36% of GDP since 2014. India's allocation, although consistent with the 'Education 2030 Framework for Action' recommendation of spending 4-6% of GDP on education, remains below that of various Central and Southern Asian nations.

 

The committee suggests a steady rise in education spending to reach the NEP 2020 goal and make the world-class education system available to all segments of society.

 

Source: The Print, The Tribune