Education stakeholders ahead of Budget 2026 are calling for targeted investments that strengthen learning outcomes, employability and workforce readiness. With last year’s Rs 1.28 lakh crore allocation as the base, leaders across schools, higher education, skilling and edtech are seeking continued focus on AI-led learning, climate education infrastructure, green job creation, teacher capacity-building, apprenticeships and stronger industry–academia collaboration to align education with emerging economic and technological priorities.