Jairam Ramesh slammed the Centre's digital coaching plans, calling them a hurried gimmick after Rahul Gandhi highlighted soaring private tutoring costs. He pointed to the failure of existing schemes, citing a parliamentary committee report.
Congress MP Jairam Ramesh on Friday launched a sharp critique against the central administration for its digital coaching initiatives, asserting that Lok Sabha Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi's recent disclosures regarding soaring household expenditures on private tutoring forced the central administration to announce hurried digital education initiatives. The Congres MP, in a post on X, targeted Prime Minister Narendra Modi over the implementation failures of existing welfare schemes, adding that Indian families are spending more on coaching centres than the Govt of India invests in education.
He wrote, "Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha @RahulGandhi at the Chhatron ki Goonj event in Kota on June 17th 2026 raised one of the most important issues in education today, that an extractive coaching industry has supplanted the public education system and that Indian families are now spending 2.5 times more on coaching centres than the Govt of India invests in education."
"It was this disclosure that forced the Prime Minister, in a desperate attempt to escape growing public pressure, to announce free online coaching for students on 15th August. But his Government's track record hardly inspires any confidence. Its existing Free Coaching scheme has been missing its target for 3 years," Jairam Ramesh added.
Ramesh Cites Parliamentary Report on Scheme Failure
Questioning the timing and intent behind the government's recent announcements following opposition campaigns, Jairam Ramesh pointed to specific findings from a recent legislative panel review. "The Ministry of Social Justice was to enrol 10,500 candidates for free coaching over 3 years, but it has only enrolled 2,790 students - just 26% of the target. The budget for this scheme has reduced every year, and last year's spending was less than half the budget. These startling facts have been revealed in the latest report of the Parliamentary Standing Committee of the Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment tabled on Aug 10, 2026," he wrote.
Emphasising the broader systemic issues facing the nation's academic framework rather than temporary digital fixes, Ramesh questioned the executive competence. "Rather than fundamentally fix India's broken education system or re-invest in public education, the Prime Minister has decided to instead invest public resources in online coaching. It is an accountability-evading gimmick, and this Government has already shown little capacity to implement this scheme successfully," Jairam Ramesh wrote.
Rahul Gandhi on Women Empowerment and Student Concerns
On the other hand, earlier in August, Congress MP and Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi on Saturday said women are the "strength of India" and urged them to assert their identity, fight for their rights and challenge patriarchal norms.
In a post on X, Rahul Gandhi said, "Women are the strength of India - its foundation, its present, and its future." "You belong to no one but yourself. Be loud. Be proud. Fight for your space. Smash the patriarchy!" he added. His remarks came as he highlighted the role of women in shaping the country's present and future during the 'Chhatron ki Goonj' campaign in Maharashtra on Saturday.
Addressing the programme, Gandhi said India's greatest strength lies in the aspirations, dreams and potential of its women. "Many times, people ask me, 'What is India's biggest strength?' You get many answers when you ask this question. Somebody will say our economy. Somebody will say our military. Somebody will say our medical system. Somebody might even say our people, but I am very clear on what is India's biggest strength, our biggest asset, and that strength is 70 crore unique journeys, unique imaginations, unique dreams that the women of India are living," he said.
The 'Chhatron Ki Goonj' campaign, launched by Gandhi in 2026, seeks to provide a platform for student concerns, including examination irregularities, paper leaks, rising education costs, recruitment-related issues and unemployment. The campaign has previously been held in Kota, Dehradun and Prayagraj and is aimed at bringing student grievances into the national political discourse. (ANI)
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