Budget 2025: Sitharaman announces expansion of IITs, medical colleges
What's the story
Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman has announced ambitious expansion plans for India's premier educational institutions.
In her speech, she said that the student capacity across the 23 Indian Institutes of Technology (IITs) has doubled in the last decade, now housing 1.35 lakh students.
Keeping this in mind, five IITs will be provided funds to upgrade their infrastructure and house an additional 6,500 students.
Infrastructure enhancement
IIT Patna to undergo expansion for improved facilities
The government has allocated funds exclusively for the expansion of IIT Patna.
"The hostel and other infrastructure capacity at IIT Patna will also be expanded...", Sitharaman said.
Five other IITs—Bhilai, Dharwad, Goa, Jammu, and Tirupati—will also be provided funds for infrastructural upgrades.
The expansion is planned to accommodate the increasing demand for IIT seats while also strengthening India's position as a global education powerhouse.
Healthcare education
Medical colleges to add 10,000 more seats
Sitharaman also unveiled plans for a major expansion in the medical sector.
Next year, an additional 10,000 seats will be added to medical colleges, with the aim to add 75,000 over the next five years.
She also announced the setting up of three Centers of Excellence (CoEs) in Artificial Intelligence or education.
A budget of ₹500 crore has been allocated for the same. The CoEs will focus on advanced research and development of AI-enabled learning tools, and promote industry-academia collaboration.
Technological innovation
AI coes to revolutionize education sector
The AI CoEs will work with leading educational institutions, research organizations, and private companies to create AI models for education-related applications.
These applications would range from personalized learning experiences to automated assessments and AI-powered tutoring systems.
In Parliament, Sitharaman said, "Artificial Intelligence is revolutionizing industries across the globe, and India must take the lead in AI research and applications."