Rough Copy

Samagra Shiksha Now Allocates More To Quality, Gender & Equity

Gurjot Sidhu — Wed, 18 Mar 2026 13:10:26 +0530

The reduction in support for teacher salaries has shifted focus to access, retention, quality, gender and equity.

Chandigarh Knows Its Way Around Samagra Shiksha

Gurjot Sidhu — Mon, 09 Mar 2026 13:10:26 +0530

While some states struggle to get approvals, the UT gets 90% of its budget sanctioned on average.

Are Samagra Shiksha Approvals Keeping Up With Inflation?

Gurjot Sidhu — Tue, 03 Mar 2026 16:10:26 +0530

No, they are not.

State Demands Rise and Fall, But Samagra Shiksha Approvals Stay Flat

Gurjot Sidhu — Tue, 03 Mar 2026 13:10:26 +0530

Even as states propose widely varying budgets each year, the Project Approval Board’s recommendations remain relatively stable, hovering near ₹60,000 crore.

Samagra Shiksha Approves Only Three-Quarters of What States Request

Gurjot Sidhu — Sun, 01 Mar 2026 13:10:26 +0530

Even the funds that do get approved often go unspent or spill over into following years.

A Busload of Indian Billionaires is Worth More Than the Union Budget 2026-27

Gurjot Sidhu — Thu, 19 Feb 2026 13:10:26 +0530

Three global billionaires command as much wealth as it costs to run India for a year.

India Pays More in Interest Than It Would Cost to Simply Buy LIC, Maruti and HCL

Gurjot Sidhu — Wed, 18 Feb 2026 13:10:26 +0530

In a single year, India’s interest bill alone is big enough to purchase some of its largest corporations wholesale, and still have change left over.

India’s Union Budget 2026-27 Equals the Market Value of Its Five Biggest Companies

Gurjot Sidhu — Sun, 15 Feb 2026 13:10:26 +0530

One year of governing 1.4 billion people sits in the same financial bracket as five boardrooms.

Spending Under Samagra Shiksha Keeps Getting Lower

Gurjot Sidhu — Wed, 11 Feb 2026 13:10:26 +0530

Not only has the inflation-adjusted value of the budget been declining, the actual spending under the scheme has reduced as well.

Are Union Budget Allocations to Samagra Shiksha Keeping Up With Inflation?

Gurjot Sidhu — Mon, 09 Feb 2026 13:10:26 +0530

Nope. While allocations to the flagship scheme have increased in nominal terms, the inflation-adjusted value of the budget has been declining.

Life In India Is Now Twice As Expensive As 2012

Gurjot Sidhu — Mon, 09 Feb 2026 13:10:26 +0530

The Consumer Price Index shows that compared to 2012, the prices of goods and services have almost doubled in 2026.

Rural India Has Gotten More Expensive Relative To Urban India

Gurjot Sidhu — Mon, 09 Feb 2026 13:10:26 +0530

The Consumer Price Index shows that prices of goods and services have increased 2 percent more in rural areas than in urban areas.

When is it a Good Time to Buy X?

Gurjot Sidhu — Sun, 18 Jan 2026 15:27:39 +0530

Using Consumer Price Inflation Index to figure out which month to buy something in India.

How to Create Good Charts

Gurjot Sidhu — Fri, 09 Jan 2026 16:10:30 +0530

Data visualisation for decision-making should prioritise function while not entirely foregoing form.

Reasons for Secondary School Dropout in India

Gurjot Sidhu — Fri, 09 Jan 2026 13:30:27 +0530

Most common reasons found across the country. You don't need to run another household survey.

“The Number Went Up” Is Not Analysis - Do Better Than a Bot

Gurjot Sidhu — Thu, 08 Jan 2026 14:27:39 +0530

Why analysts should take responsibility for interpretation, not hide behind neutral-sounding statements that help no one decide anything.

Education Datasets Wiki

Gurjot Sidhu — Wed, 07 Jan 2026 13:10:30 +0530

This guide provides a ready-reckoner for datasets relevant to the Indian public education sector.

How to Write a Report Analysis Note for a Decision-Maker

Gurjot Sidhu — Wed, 07 Jan 2026 13:10:30 +0530

This guide provides a three-step recipe for drafting an analysis note that is useful, relevant and easy to implement for the decision-maker.

About

Gurjot Sidhu — Tue, 06 Jan 2026 13:10:30 +0530

Hi, I am Gurjot. For the past decade, I have worked with social sector teams in India to find, make sense of, and use data to inform real decisions.

This blog is a place for short notes and data explorations on topics I find worth examining. Despite the schadenfreude, I enjoy messing around with sarkari data. This rough copy will feature some of my messy work.

Flipping the “forest for the trees” idiom, my intention is to plant trees so a forest may emerge. Which is why most data explorations in this blog are atomic.

Checklist for Data Collection

Gurjot Sidhu — Tue, 06 Jan 2026 13:10:30 +0530

A checklist to help you navigate the data collection process in a more robust manner.

Formatting Tips for Documents

Gurjot Sidhu — Tue, 06 Jan 2026 13:10:30 +0530

This guide provides readily implementable tips for reducing the reader's cognitive load.

Checklist for Data Entry with Google Sheets

Gurjot Sidhu — Mon, 16 Oct 2023 13:10:30 +0530

A checklist to ensure that data is entered in a consistent manner even when multiple people are entering data.

Rough Copy

Samagra Shiksha Now Allocates More To Quality, Gender & Equity

Chandigarh Knows Its Way Around Samagra Shiksha

Are Samagra Shiksha Approvals Keeping Up With Inflation?

State Demands Rise and Fall, But Samagra Shiksha Approvals Stay Flat

Samagra Shiksha Approves Only Three-Quarters of What States Request

A Busload of Indian Billionaires is Worth More Than the Union Budget 2026-27

India Pays More in Interest Than It Would Cost to Simply Buy LIC, Maruti and HCL

India’s Union Budget 2026-27 Equals the Market Value of Its Five Biggest Companies

Spending Under Samagra Shiksha Keeps Getting Lower

Are Union Budget Allocations to Samagra Shiksha Keeping Up With Inflation?

Life In India Is Now Twice As Expensive As 2012

Rural India Has Gotten More Expensive Relative To Urban India

When is it a Good Time to Buy X?

How to Create Good Charts

Reasons for Secondary School Dropout in India

“The Number Went Up” Is Not Analysis - Do Better Than a Bot

Education Datasets Wiki

How to Write a Report Analysis Note for a Decision-Maker

About

Checklist for Data Collection

Formatting Tips for Documents

Checklist for Data Entry with Google Sheets

Archive