Education, skills and research
School and higher education, skill development, and scientific and industrial research.
₹1,77,498 crore
spent in 2025–26, 3.6% of all union government spending that year. Revised estimate, not yet final.
Every year on record
| Year | Amount | Share of union spending | Basis |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2025–26 | ₹1,77,498 crore | 3.58% | Revised estimate |
| 2024–25 | ₹1,54,859 crore | 3.33% | Actuals |
| 2023–24 | ₹1,63,263 crore | 3.67% | Actuals |
| 2022–23 | ₹1,34,721 crore | 3.21% | Actuals |
| 2021–22 | ₹1,21,303 crore | 3.20% | Actuals |
| 2020–21 | ₹1,18,922 crore | 3.39% | Actuals |
What is inside it
10 budget lines make up this category. A group carries no figure of its own anywhere in this dataset: the total above is the sum of these, and each of them cites the document it was read from.
- Department of School Education and Literacy Samagra Shiksha, PM POSHAN mid-day meals, PM SHRI model schools, Kendriya and Navodaya Vidyalayas. ₹71,000 cr
- Department of Higher Education The IITs, NITs, IIMs and central universities, the UGC, and student scholarship and loan interest schemes. ₹51,000 cr
- Department of Space ISRO — satellites, launch vehicles, space applications, and the commercial arm NewSpace India. ₹12,000 cr
- Department of Science and Technology Research grants through the Science and Engineering Research Board, the interdisciplinary cyber-physical mission, and Survey of India. ₹12,000 cr
- Department of Agricultural Research and Education The ICAR network — agricultural universities, crop and animal science institutes, and farm research stations. ₹10,000 cr
- Department of Scientific and Industrial Research The CSIR network of national laboratories and its industrial research. ₹6,000 cr
- Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation The MPLAD scheme giving each MP funds for local works, the census and surveys, and national accounts statistics. ₹6,000 cr
- Ministry of Earth Sciences Monsoon and weather forecasting, ocean research including the Deep Ocean Mission, and the supercomputers behind them. ₹3,000 cr
- Department of Biotechnology Biotechnology research institutes, vaccine and genome research, and industry research assistance through BIRAC. ₹3,000 cr
- Ministry of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship Skill India training, apprenticeships, and the industrial training institutes. ₹3,000 cr
Who spends it
The same money, grouped by the ministry that spent it rather than by what it paid for. Both views cover exactly the same rupees, that they agree is checked at build time, not assumed.
- Ministry of Education ₹1.22 lakh cr in total
- Department of Space ₹12,000 cr in total
- Ministry of Science and Technology ₹21,000 cr in total
- Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare ₹1.33 lakh cr in total
- Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation ₹6,000 cr in total
- Ministry of Earth Sciences ₹3,000 cr in total
- Ministry of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship ₹3,000 cr in total
Your share of it
These are national totals. Put in what you paid in income tax and the same proportions are applied to your own figure.
Work out your own share