Youth, student groups criticise Karnataka Budget over jobs, education funding

Student and youth organisations have criticised the State Budget for 2026-27, alleging that it fails to address the pressing issues of unemployment among youth and the declining state of public education.

In separate statements issued on Friday, the Democratic Youth Federation of India (DYFI) and the All India Democratic Students Organisation (AIDSO) said the ₹4.48-lakh crore Budget presented by Chief Minister Siddaramaiah lacked a clear policy vision for employment generation and strengthening of the public education system.

The Karnataka State committee of DYFI described the Budget as “anti-youth”, stating that it did not offer concrete measures to address the growing unemployment crisis in the State. The organisation said that apart from the proposal to fill 56,432 posts, including 15,000 teaching positions in the Education Department, the Budget did not outline a comprehensive plan to fill the over 2 lakh vacant posts in various government departments.

“The proposal to focus on training programmes for unemployed youth without ensuring employment opportunities would not provide security to job aspirants. Instead of upgrading the Agriculture Department’s Raitha Call Centre using Artificial Intelligence, such work could provide employment to young people,” said DYFI State president Lavitra Vastrad in the statement.

The organisation also alleged that the Budget had allocated only limited resources to key social sectors, with about ₹47,224 crore earmarked for education and ₹17,817 crore for health.

“This accounts for only about 10% and 4% of the total Budget respectively, reflecting inadequate priority for public education and healthcare,” she said.

At the same time, DYFI welcomed the government’s announcement of introducing a “Rohith Vemula Act” to prevent caste-based discrimination in educational institutions and the proposal to conduct student union elections in colleges and universities.

Meanwhile, the Vijayanagara district committee of AIDSO said the Budget indicated a “systematic weakening of public education” under the Karnataka Public Schools (KPS) policy. The organisation alleged that concentrating resources on a limited number of model institutions while neglecting thousands of neighbourhood government schools would undermine the broader public education system.

AIDSO also criticised the allocation of ₹3,900 crore to upgrade 800 schools as Karnataka Public Schools, arguing that the policy risks diverting resources away from ordinary government schools that form the backbone of rural education.

The organisation pointed out that the Budget allocation for construction and repair of school classrooms, toilets, and furniture was inadequate compared to the needs of government schools across the State. It also said that the proposal to recruit 15,000 teachers was insufficient when more than 50,000 teaching posts remain vacant in schools and colleges.

The student body also raised concerns about the government’s focus on “centres of excellence” and start-up driven models in higher education, stating that such initiatives may benefit a limited section while ignoring the basic academic needs of the majority of students.

Both organisations demanded that the government increase allocations for education and health, fill vacant teaching and government posts, and introduce policies that ensure employment opportunities for youth while strengthening the public education system.