Female enrollment in higher education has gone up by 28% in 10 years, said Finance Minister Sitharaman while announcing the Union Budget for the year 2024-25. "In STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics) courses, girls and women constitute 43% of the enrollment, one of the highest in the world," she said. 

Further, the FM stressed that the momentum through Nari Shakti, empowerment of women through entrepreneurship, ease of living and dignity of women has gained momentum in these 10 years. The minister stressed that 30 crore PM MUDRA Yojana loans have been given to women entrepreneurs. 

Today, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman presented the country with the budget for the financial year 2024-25.

Ahead of the budgetary session, Prime Minister Narendra Modi, on Wednesday, January 31, had said that Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman will present the upcoming interim budget with "Disha-Nirdeshak Baatein" (vision-guided approach) and display the strength of “Nari Shakti” (women empowerment). The President of India, Droupadi Murmu also addressed the Parliament and hailed the progress of India as an emerging strong economy.

One of the most important sectors, Education and Literacy, saw a rise in the budgetary allocation, up from Rs 59,503 crore allocated in 2022-23 to a whopping Rs 68,805 crore in 2023-24. What more is in store for this year? Stay tuned for the updates to find out more on the Union Budget 2024.