Today, February 1, as an established tradition of the B-Day, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman met President Droupadi Murmu before presenting the pre-election Budget for 2024-25. President Murmu extended her best wishes to the finance minister.
Taking to X (formerly known as Twitter), Rashtrapati Bhawan said, "Union Minister of Finance and Corporate Affairs Smt Nirmala Sitharaman along with Ministers of State Dr Bhagwat Kishanrao Karad and Shri Pankaj Chaudhary and senior officials of the Ministry of Finance called on President Droupadi Murmu at Rashtrapati Bhavan before presenting the Union Budget."
Thereafter, the Union Cabinet met to clear the Budget. Before the actual presentation in Parliament. The Cabinet headed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi will approve the Budget for fiscal year 2024-25 (April 2024 to March 2025). Meanwhile, expectations are running high as Sitharaman presents her sixth budget in the Lok Sabha today, February 1. As per an official estimate, the economy is projected to expand by 7.3 per cent in the current fiscal year, reported PTI.
Ahead of Budget 2024, let's delve into the highlights of 2023.
Highlights from 2023
- The education sector witnessed a rise in allocation as the minister allocated a budget of Rs 1,12,899 crore for 2023-24
- Kendriya Vidyalaya Sangathan's (KVS) budget rose from Rs 7,650 crore to Rs 8,363 crore. Similarly, the Navodaya Vidyalaya Samiti (NVS) also saw an increase in allocation from Rs 4,115 crore to Rs 5,486 crore
- PM-POSHAN (POshan SHAkti Nirman) allocation increased from Rs 10,233.75 crore to Rs 11,600 crore
- The budget allocated for financial aid for students — including scholarships — was been reduced from Rs 2,077.85 crore to Rs 1,950 crore
- The Indian Institutes of Technology (IITs) received a decent hike in terms of support. The budget allocated increased from Rs 8,495 crore to Rs 9,661.5 crore
The budget allocated for Indian Institutes of Management (IIMs) saw a considerable decline from Rs 653.92 crore to Rs 300 crore
- The Indian Institute of Science, Education and Research (IISERs) saw an increase from Rs 1,379.53 crore to Rs 1,462 crore
- The Indian Institute of Millets Research in Hyderabad will be made into a centre of excellence. "...The institute will be supported as the Centre of Excellence for sharing best practices, research and technologies at the international level," the finance minister had added
