PREFACE
The Department of Education, Ministry of Human Resource Development, takes pride in presenting this unique publication on public expenditure on education. This is the second in the series of research publications brought out as part of DPEP. It is a historic publication presenting the time series date right from the beginning of Indian planning to 1993-94. In order to enhance its value the publication incorporates even the data pertaining to 1994-95 to the extent available. The idea is to present authentic primary data which can be analysed by the research and policy community.
The publication is a legacy to Indian education by Shri S.C. Sahai who was associated with the Planning Division from 1984 till his retirement in 1994. He was a veritable walking encyclopedia on Education statistics. He gracefully accepted my request to put together the invaluable data of which he was the repository. His compilation was upto the period 1992-93. His successor in office, Shri H. S. Nehria of Indian Statistical Service, updated the data and Shrimati Sibani Swain of Indian Economic Service put together the brief analysis and selected data for graphs. I am thankful to the three of them.
I would like to place on record the contribution made by Shri A. Venu Gopal and Shri. M. Subba Rao of National Informatics Centre by developing the software for validation of data. I also express my sincere thanks to the project staff (Shrimati S. Y. Gajwe, Shri P. C. Jain and Shri V. S. Nagar) of Planning and Monitoring Division and Shri Krishan Kumar of CMIS Unit of the Department of Education.
There are three major sources of data on expenditure on education: (i) household surveys conducted by NSS and NCAER, (ii) budgetary data and (iii) financial data collected from educational institutions. This compendium offers the time series data collected from budget documents. A companion volume on financial data from educational institutions is being compiled. We hope that these publications will go a long way in filling data gaps of Indian public finance.
DR. R.V. VAIDYANATHA AYYAR Joint Secretary, Government of India New Delhi, Ministry of Human Resource Development January 1995 (Department of Education)
BUDGETARY RESOURCES FOR EDUCATION Education is a critical input in human resource development and is essential for the economic growth of the country. Since 1951- 52, when planning commenced, there has been a tremendous expansion in the education system. Total number of educational institutions has increased from 0.84 million at present and corresponding enrolment for elementary and secondary education increased from 22.8 million to 164.6 million. To develop and maintain such a large education system, the budgeted expenditure on education has also increased from Rs. 644.6 million in 1951-52 to Rs. 239089.4 million in 1993-94 at current prices. Budgetary resources are the predominant source of funding education in India. It would be a truism to say that Indian education is essentially funded by government.
The private sources of financing education include fees, donations and endowments etc. Funds provided by universities and local bodies are mostly grants and transfers from the Central and State Governments and thus come under public funding.
Table 1:Percentage Expenditure on Education by Sources of
Funding
Sources 1950-51 1955-56 1960-61 1965-66 1983-84 1988-89
Govt. funds 57.1 61.8 68.0 71.2 81.5 83.1
University - - - 1.6 1.6 0.0
funds -
Local body 10.9 8.6 6.5 6.3 5.6 6.7
funds
Fees 20.4 20.0 17.1 15.3 7.5 6.1
Endowment & 11.6 9.6 8.4 7.2 3.8 4.1
Other Private
Sources.
Total 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0
* School education only.
1
The share of public funding in education sector has increased over the last 40 years from a level of 68.0 percent in 1951- 52 to 89.8 percent in 1989-90 (Table 1). The main reason for the sharp increase can be attributed to provision of free education for all children upto class VIII, and for the girls upto class XII all over the country. In some states, education is free for girls at higher education level also. Apart from free education, the fee structure at secondary and higher education levels has not changed during the last three decades, notwithstanding sharp increases In the educational expenditure due to various pay revisions and payment of numerous installments of dearness allowances to teachers and non-teaching staff. All this additionality has been met from the government funds, increasing the share of government expenditure