Mumbai| Union Human Resource Development Minister Prakash Javadekar said on Sunday that the government expenditure on education has gone up from 3.8 per cent of Gross Domestic Product (GDP) in 2014 to 4.6 per cent during the NDA rule.
Educational infrastructure too is being expanded and reformed, the minister said at a convocation at D Y Patil University in Navi Mumbai.
βIt is our priority that 6 per cent of GDP should be allotted to educationβ¦While total expenditure by central and state governments on education was 3.8 per cent of GDP in 2014, it has increased to 4.6 per cent now. This indicates that we are progressing towards 6 per cent,β he said.
βWe are making continuous efforts to improve educational facilitiesβ¦Seven new IITs, seven new IIMs, two new NITs (National Institutes of Technology), three central universities and around 125 Kendriya Vidyalayas have been started,β he said.
The portal SWAYAM offers 2,000 courses and βlike ATM, this is ATL βAnytime Learningβ for everyone for freeβ, Javadekar said.
Besides, 32 educational channels have been launched while free coaching for IIT Joint Entrance Exam is offered through IIT-PAL (Professor Assisted Learning) programme, he said.
The Union minister also said that the NDA government took a βhistoric decision of introducing graded autonomy while ensuring quality educationβ.
Saying that a βnew India is emergingβ under Prime Minister Narendra Modiβs leadership, he told the graduating students that βwe need to take a decision to live for society, this is necessary for a new India which is free of corruption, uncleanliness, terrorism, poverty, communalism and casteismβ.
The BJP leader also pointed out that over 200 of 900 universities in the country have adopted Indian costume for convocation, and he was confident that βD Y Patil University too would conduct their convocation ceremony in Indian costume from next yearβ.
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