Union Budget 2025:
Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman presented the Union Budget 2025-26 today, introducing several initiatives to enhance education, skill development, and research. The budget focuses on preparing students for evolving job markets, expanding digital access, and strengthening higher education institutions.
Major Announcements For Education Sector:
The budget focuses on preparing students for evolving job markets, expanding digital access, and strengthening higher education institutions.
Atal Tinkering Labs to Foster Innovation
The government plans to establish 50,000 Atal Tinkering Labs in government schools over the next five years. These labs aim to nurture curiosity, scientific thinking, and innovation among students.
Broadband Connectivity For Rural Schools
Under the BharatNet project, all government secondary schools in rural areas will receive broadband connectivity, bridging the digital divide and improving access to online learning resources.
Bharatiya Bhasha Pustak Scheme For Digital Learning
The Bharatiya Bhasha Pustak Scheme will provide Indian language books in digital format for school and higher education students, making learning materials more accessible and enhancing subject comprehension.
National Centres Of Excellence For Skilling
Building on last year’s initiative, five National Centres of Excellence for Skilling will be established. These centres will collaborate with global experts to design curricula, train instructors, develop a skills certification framework, and conduct periodic reviews.
IIT Infrastructure Expansion
The student capacity at 23 IITs has doubled over the past decade, growing from 65,000 to 1.35 lakh. Additional infrastructure will be developed in five IITs established after 2014, creating space for 6,500 more students. IIT Patna will also see expanded hostel and campus facilities.
Centre Of Excellence In AI For Education
A new Centre of Excellence in Artificial Intelligence (AI) for education will be set up with an outlay of Rs 500 crore. This follows previous AI centers focused on agriculture, healthcare, and sustainable cities.
Expansion Of Medical Education
To address the growing demand for medical professionals, 10,000 new seats will be added in medical colleges and hospitals next year, contributing to the target of 75,000 additional seats over five years.
Tax Breakdown: How Much Relief Will Those Earning Up To Rs 25 Lakh Get
Union Budget 2025 has provided a giant relief for taxpayers. The government has revised the slabs and rates under the new regime to reduce taxes and leave taxpayers with more money in their hands. The government believes this will help domestic consumption and boost savings and investment.
The New proposals, there will be no tax burden on up to Rs 12 lakh annual income while the revised slabs will benefit those earning more than that. The changes are part of the Budget presentation by Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Saturday.
Here’s a comprehensive view of how the new tax structure looks like in the backdrop of the existing slabs:
Announcing the budget, the Finance Minister said taxpayers with Rs 12 lakh annual income will get a benefit of Rs 80,000 and those earning Rs 18 lakh will get a benefit of Rs 70,000 under the new slabs. They will also enjoy the additional benefit of Rs 75,000 standard deduction.
The government has also shared a breakdown of how the new slabs will benefit those earning up to Rs 25 lakh. The tax rate above Rs 24 lakh annual income is flat 30%.