Karnataka Budget 2025-26: Allocation to the education sector cut by 2%

Compared to the previous Budget, the 2025-26 one presented by Chief Minister Siddaramaiah on Friday cut allocation for education by 2%. In 2024-25, he allocated 12% in the Budget to the sector and now it has come down to 10%. The total allocation this year is ₹45,286 crore.

Compared to the previous Budget, the 2025-26 one presented by Chief Minister Siddaramaiah on Friday cut allocation for education by 2%. In 2024-25, he allocated 12% in the Budget to the sector and now it has come down to 10%. The total allocation this year is ₹45,286 crore.

In this Budget, he allocated ₹419 crore for subsidy and financial assistance, which was ₹481 crore last year, which could affect scholarships and other programmes.

On the plus side, it has emphasised filling vacant posts of teachers in the Department of School Education and Literacy (DSEL) and Higher Education Departments. The Chief Minister has promised to fill up vacant teaching posts at government primary and high schools, besides degree and engineering colleges, and polytechnics. Currently, 60,000 guest faculty members are working against the vacant teaching posts under the DSEL and the Higher Education departments.

The Chief Minister has announced 500 new Karnataka Public Schools (KPSes) at a cost of ₹2,500 crore with assistance from the Asian Development Bank. And he has taken steps to upgrade 100 government higher primary schools to high schools, and 50 eligible high schools to pre-university colleges. He also announced that pre-primary classes will be started in 5,000 schools.

Artificial Intelligence (AI) based ‘Kalika Deepa’ programme in collaboration with Ek-Step Foundation will be extended to students in 2,000 schools to enable students to learn Kannada and English and acquire early mathematical competencies. I-Code Labs will be set up in collaboration with Agasthya Foundation to introduce coding for students of government schools.

The State government has decided to monitor the attendance of schoolchildren through technology under ‘Nirantara’ programme based on face recognition technology, the Chief Minister announced. Bilingual sections will be started in 4,000 government schools to enhance students’ fluency in English.

The Chief Minister announced a constituent medical college of Rajiv Gandhi University of Health Sciences (RGUHS) in Bagalkot and a medical college on public-private partnership (PPP) model in Kolar. Cancer diagnosis unit will be started in Bidar Government Medical College hospital. New nursing colleges will be established in Yalburga, Jewargi, and Yadgir out of KKRDB funds.