Budget 2026: India Boosts Skilling, But Job Conversion Remains Key Challenge

• Union Budget FY2026-27 emphasizes early-stage skilling and workforce alignment to bridge the gap between education and labor market needs.
• Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman announced measures to strengthen vocational education, especially for the services sector, which contributes over half of India's GVA.
• An Education to Employment and Enterprise committee will recommend growth measures, assess AI's impact on jobs, and aim for India to capture 10% of the global services market by 2047.
• Targeted interventions include expanding AVGC content labs, creating new Allied Health Professionals Institutions, and training tourist guides.
• Experts like Shantanu Rooj and Arindam Mukherjee highlight that successful execution and measurable labor-market outcomes are crucial for the skilling initiatives to translate into sustained employment.

Why It Matters: India's Budget 2026 prioritizes skilling, but effective execution and job creation are vital for success.