Government funding to the All India Council for Technical Education (AICTE) has witnessed a steep decline over the past two years, even as the Centre announces several new big-ticket schemes in higher education. Minister of State for Education Dr. Sukanta Majumdar informed the Rajya Sabha on Wednesday that the grant-in-aid to AICTE has dropped from Rs 420 crore in 2022-23 to just Rs 137.5 crore in 2024-25-a sharp cut of nearly 61 per cent in two years.
Student scholarships, a core part of AICTE's quality improvement efforts, have also been affected. Expenditure on scholarships fell from Rs 387.13 crore in 2021-22 to Rs 284.32 crore in 2023-24, an almost 18 per cent dip in a year. While there has been a minor recovery to Rs 309.47 crore in 2024-25, allocation remains below earlier levels.
The data, provided in response to a parliamentary question by MP Dr. M. Thambidurai, raises concerns over shrinking direct support for students and technical institutions, even as the government pushes ahead with large-scale educational reforms in line with the National Education Policy (NEP) 2020. These include the Rs 50,000 crore Anusandhan National Research Foundation (ANRF) to boost research and innovation, and the One Nation One Subscription (ONOS) scheme with an estimated budget of Rs 6,000 crore to provide access to journals for over 6,300 institutions between 2025 and 2027.
The minister further mentions the 'World Class Institutions scheme' launched in 2017, which has so far declared 12 universities as Institutes of Eminence (IoEs). These include IIT Bombay, IIT Delhi, IIT Madras, IIT Kharagpur, IISc Bengaluru, Banaras Hindu University, University of Delhi and University of Hyderabad in the public category, along with private universities such as BITS Pilani, Manipal Academy of Higher Education, O.P. Jindal Global University and Shiv Nadar University. Public institutions have been allocated nearly Rs 6,200 crore under this scheme.
A new MERITE scheme with a financial outlay of Rs 4,200 crore will be implemented in 275 technical institutions, covering 175 engineering colleges and 100 polytechnics, between 2025-26 and 2029-30 to improve governance, quality, and equity in technical education.
The government has also approved Centres of Excellence in Artificial Intelligence in health, sustainable cities, and agriculture with an allocation of Rs 990 crore till 2027-28. Budget 2025-26 further announced a Rs 500 crore AI centre for education.
Since 2014, the government has established 16 Indian Institutes of Information Technology (IIITs), 8 Indian Institutes of Management (IIMs), 8 Central Universities, 7 Indian Institutes of Technology (IITs), 2 Indian Institutes of Science Education and Research (IISERs) and 1 National Institute of Technology (NIT).
While the expansion of institutions and launch of new schemes reflect a push for global competitiveness, the cuts in AICTE funding and scholarships risk undermining student-level support and the functioning of technical colleges on the ground.