Pranab Mukherjee, who is holding additional charge of the finance portfolio, presented the Interim Budget for 2009-10.
A number of new IITs started functioning in 2008-09, the minister said, adding that two more IITs in Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan will start functioning in 2009-10.
According to Mukherjee, an Ordinance was promulgated for establishing 15 central universities and in addition to this, 6 new Indian Institutes of Technology in Bihar, Andhra Pradesh, Rajasthan, Orissa, Punjab and Gujarat have started functioning in 2008-09 while two more IITs in Madhya Pradesh and Himachal Pradesh are expected to commence their academic session in 2009-10.
The minister further stated that two new schools of Planning and Architecture at Vijayawada in Andhra Pradesh and Bhopal in Madhya Pradesh have started functioning.
The teaching is expected to commence from academic year 2009-10 in four, out of six new Indian Institute of Management proposed for the Eleventh Plan in Haryana, Rajasthan, Jharkhand and Tamil Nadu.
Due to a revision in Educational Loan Scheme by the government, the number of beneficiaries has increased from 3,19,000 to 14,09,000 and the amount of loan outstanding has increased from Rs. 4,500 crore (Rs 45 billion) as on March 31, 2004 to Rs 24,260 crore (Rs 242.6 billion) as on September 30, 2008.
Source: PIB