Budget Highlights – Education Sector

The much awaited Union Budget 2017 was presented by the Finance Minister Arun Jaitely on 1^st February 2017. Education is one of the key components for driving economical growth and acts as impetus for government schemes such as Make in India, Digital India and Skill India. Government should devise schemes to boost other sectors such as Automation, Artificial Intelligence, Textile, Energy etc. apart from focusing on the IT and applied IT sectors.

It is extremely important to pay attention on improving the quality of educational institutes for creating skilled workforce, ready to join the industry. The key budget highlights of the Education sector are as following –

• In year 2017, citizens will gain access to SWAYAM, a massive open online courses (MOOC) platform. This education portal, will be introduced with 350 online courses and will be providing high quality e-content to all the colleges and universities free of cost.
• Job-creating packages for textile sector
• Good quality institutions which will possess better quality and education
• 100 international centres will be launched across the country for providing assistance to the youth seeking jobs outside India
• PM Kaushal KendrasPM Kaushal Kendras to be extended to 600 districts
• 5 crore youth to be trained under Sankalp programme launched by government
• Quality and market relevance will be noted in vocational training
• Special scheme for employment has been launched in the textile sector
• National Testing Agency will be conducting major entrance examinations
• CBSE will be freed from conducting examinations, and will focus majorly on academics
• Skill strengthening to be implemented from this year with a budget of Rs 2,200 crore
• Greater autonomy will be provided to major institutes
• UGC will be reformed for higher education, colleges and institutions will give more autonomy
• Two new AIIMS to be opened in Jharkhand and Gujarat
• Big employment opportunities to come up in tourism sector
• Government will provide education through digital platform and the country will be turned into an electronics hub
• Additional opportunities for employment of women to open up through model shops and establishment bill
• The BHIM app has been downloaded 17 million times, and special cash back scheme for BHIM users

The main highlight of the budget in education sector was the introduction of 350 online courses and big employment opportunities to be introduced in textile and tourism sectors.

By Manisha Bhatia

Media & Communications, Fiinovation

Digital Revolution Vs Social Revolution – Connecting the Dots

The world has been witnessing various revolutions as mankind continues to evolve. The term revolution has been mostly associated with bloodbaths, regime changes and military actions. However, there are many revolutions such as the industrial revolution, green revolution, blue revolution that has benefited mankind without any bloodshed. Whenever, the world required any course correction, a revolution occurred to provide new direction.

After India got independence from the British, it has seen revolutions in terms of nationalisation of banks, the JP movement, white revolution, green revolution, Anna Hazare movement etc. Likewise, industrial revolution, LPG policy changes and technological revolutions ensured India becomes one of the major economies of the world. Today, we have reached a point whereby technology has transformed lives in one way or the other. From personal life to the globalization of the economy, science and technology has brought a Digital era which has embedded technology in every social revolution. It is to be understood that technology is an enabler, that ensures broad and free flow of information or processes along with democratization of ability to freely and easily connect with people. It is therefore, that the Anna Hazare movement or the NDA in the 16th Lok Sabha elections were able to gather such mass support.

This shows us the amalgamation of the digital technologies and social revolution in this so called ‘Information Age’. Social revolutions and the digital revolutions, rather than competing with each other, are working hand in hand to bring about societal change. Social usually means connecting people while revolution means changing the fundamental way. This amalgamation starts with people, a common thread between them as these digital tools is made, constructed and developed by people. Therefore, it implies that digitalization is actually connecting people in new way and a faster rate that history has ever witnessed.

I strongly believe that every individual has the power to help shape the outcomes of every major change. Technology acts as catalyst of this change. Today, we see protests on social media regarding any wrong doing, whether in relation to the government or public. We also see internet being clamped down by the government in a Section 144 situation. As Narendra Modi suggests, politicians today should not shy away from social media or digitalization of process as this increases accountability, connects the government directly with the people and helps in solving issues at a faster rate. This is what revolution is all about.

In the years to come, social revolution will see more social revolution that changes the way mankind evolves, and digitalization will play a crucial role in it. Mediums such as Facebook, Twitter, WhatsApp will help people to connect with social revolutions ensuring a change is being brought about. Arguably these social revolutions will amount to the greatest period of innovation ever in human history in terms of its intensity, speed and global outreach.

By Rahul Choudhury

Fiinovation