logo
Centre should spend more on education: VIT founder

Centre should spend more on education: VIT founder

VELLORE: Highlighting the long-standing demand to allocate 6% of the country's GDP to education, the founder and chancellor of Vellore Institute of Technology (VIT) Dr G Viswanathan, said that the central government should spend more on education, noting that only 3% is currently spent. He was speaking at the 40th convocation of the institute on Saturday.
'In the 2025-26 budget, the central government allocated only 2.5% of its Rs 55 lakh crore budget for education. With 4.3 crore students currently enrolled in higher education in India, the new education policy aims to achieve a 50 % gross enrolment ratio, requiring the student count to rise to 8 crore. This requires more classrooms, infrastructure and funding,' he said.
Orange background

Try Our AI Features

Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:

Comments

No comments yet...

Related Articles

Nearly 100 pc Arunachal farmers have Kisan Credit Cards, says CM Khandu
Nearly 100 pc Arunachal farmers have Kisan Credit Cards, says CM Khandu

Hans India

timea minute ago

  • Hans India

Nearly 100 pc Arunachal farmers have Kisan Credit Cards, says CM Khandu

Almost 100 per cent of Arunachal Pradesh farmers get the Kisan Credit Cards to fulfil cultivators' financial needs, Chief Minister Pema Khandu said on Sunday. He announced the numbers on his social media platform X, writing: '96,492 Kisan Credit Cards issued so far with 99.26 per cent saturation.' An official said that with nearly 46.1 per cent of the population engaged in agriculture and allied activities across the country, ensuring financial security and accessible credit for farmers remains a top priority for the Central government. Recognising this, the Union Budget 2025-26 introduced key measures to strengthen agricultural financing, particularly through the Kisan Credit Card (KCC) scheme, he said. ' The KCC scheme has been instrumental in fulfilling farmers' financial needs. With a significant increase in the loan limit under the Modified Interest Subvention Scheme from Rs 3 lakh to Rs 5 lakh, this year's budget underscores the government's commitment to empowering farmers and boosting agricultural productivity,' the official said. According to the official, safeguarding and ensuring hassle-free credit availability at a cheaper rate to farmers has been the top priority of the government. Highlighting nine years of his government's farmers' friendly schemes and activities, the Chief Minister said that Arunachal Pradesh's agri-allied sector is on the fast track of growth and transformation. 'From credit to crops, tools to technology, Arunachal Pradesh's farmers are moving towards higher productivity, sustainability, and prosperity,' CM Khandu stated. He said that Rs 142.67 crore support was provided to 99,656 farmers under PM-Kisan, and 1,02,295 farmers were equipped with Soil Health Cards in the state. According to the Chief Minister, a total of 26,163 hectares were covered, and 5,658 farmers benefited under the PM-Per Drop More Crop scheme. He said that 15,099 farmers were supported under the Mission Organic Value Chain Development, and Rs 23.25 crore has been released so far. To modernise farming activities, 42,418 modern farm tools were distributed in the last nine years, CM Khandu said in his X post.

SEBI sees sharp rise in settlement pleas, collects over Rs 860 crore in FY25
SEBI sees sharp rise in settlement pleas, collects over Rs 860 crore in FY25

Hans India

timea minute ago

  • Hans India

SEBI sees sharp rise in settlement pleas, collects over Rs 860 crore in FY25

The Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) received a record number of settlement applications in 2024-25, showing a clear trend of entities preferring to resolve disputes without prolonged litigation. According to the SEBI's latest annual report, the regulator received 703 settlement pleas during the year, a sharp rise from 434 in the previous financial year. Of these applications, 284 were resolved through settlement orders, while another 272 were either rejected, withdrawn, or returned. Through the cases that were settled, the SEBI collected Rs 798.87 crore as settlement charges and an additional Rs 64.84 crore as disgorgement charges. The settlement mechanism allows companies and individuals accused of violating securities laws to close cases by paying a fee and meeting certain conditions, rather than contesting them in court. The violations in these cases covered a wide range, including insider trading, fraudulent trading, Alternative Investment Funds (AIFs), mutual funds, and Foreign Portfolio Investors (FPIs). Alongside settlement cases, the SEBI also dealt with a large number of appeals during the year. A total of 533 new appeals were filed before the Securities Appellate Tribunal (SAT) in 2024-25, compared with 821 in the previous year. Out of these, 422 appeals were disposed of, with most being dismissed. Around 73 per cent of appeals were rejected, 5 per cent were allowed, 10 per cent were upheld with modifications, 5 per cent were remanded, and 7 per cent were withdrawn. A majority of these appeals -- about 62 per cent -- related to violations of the Prohibition of Fraudulent and Unfair Trade Practices Regulations, 2003. At the same time, the SEBI's "difficult-to-recover" (DTR) dues rose to Rs 77,800 crore in 2024-25, compared to Rs 76,293 crore at the end of March 2024. These dues remain pending despite extensive recovery efforts. The SEBI clarified that classifying them as DTR is an administrative measure and does not prevent recovery officers from pursuing them if there are changes in circumstances.

Lokesh to meet Union Ministers to push for clearance for Andhra projects
Lokesh to meet Union Ministers to push for clearance for Andhra projects

Hans India

timea minute ago

  • Hans India

Lokesh to meet Union Ministers to push for clearance for Andhra projects

Andhra Pradesh's Minister for Information Technology and Human Resources Development, Nara Lokesh, will meet Union Ministers in Delhi on Monday to discuss key pending projects of the state with the Central government. Lokesh will leave for the national capital on Sunday. He is scheduled to have a series of meetings with Union Ministers to push for faster clearances for pending projects and to discuss some new initiatives for Andhra Pradesh. Lokesh, who is the son of Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu, will hold meetings with Union Road Transport and Highways Minister Nitin Gadkari, Petroleum Minister Hardeep Singh Puri, Ports, Shipping and Waterways Minister Sarbananda Sonowal, Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal, and External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar. The state government is expected to present a set of proposals to each of these ministries during the discussions, according to a statement from the minister's office. Since the formation of the coalition government in the state, Minister Lokesh has already met Union Ministers on multiple occasions and has been actively pursuing the state's interests. His efforts have helped bring new projects to Andhra Pradesh and ensure quicker approvals from the Centre, it said. The HRD Minister is said to be making a concerted push to place Andhra Pradesh on par with the most developed states in the country. During his visit, Lokesh is also expected to meet Union Railway, IT and Electronics Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw and thank him personally for sanctioning a Semiconductor Manufacturing Unit to the state. The Union Cabinet on August 12 approved a semiconductor facility in Andhra Pradesh. Advanced System in Package Technologies (ASIP) will be tying up with APACT Co. Ltd, South Korea, for an annual capacity of 96 million units. These will be used in mobile phones, set-top boxes, automobiles and other new-age electronics applications, and will greatly contribute to an Atmanirbhar Bharat, Lokesh had said while thanking the Prime Minister for sanctioning the facility. The Union Cabinet decided to set up new semiconductor manufacturing units under the India Semiconductor Mission (ISM). These units will come up in Andhra Pradesh, Odisha and Punjab. The cumulative investment will be around Rs 4,600 crore.

DOWNLOAD THE APP

Get Started Now: Download the App

Ready to dive into a world of global content with local flavor? Download Daily8 app today from your preferred app store and start exploring.
app-storeplay-store