Budget 2026 pushes Orange Economy into classrooms
Government to help Indian Institute of Creative Technologies (IICT) in setting up AVGC content creator labs in 15,000 secondary schools and 500 colleges all over the country
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Published: Feb 1, 2026 12:11 PM | 2 min read
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Union Budget 2026 gave a major push to India’s orange economy with finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman announcing Animation, Visual Effects, Gaming and Comics (AVGC) content creator labs across 15,000 secondary schools and 500 colleges. The labs will be set up by the Indian Institute of Creative Technologies (IICT), signalling a sharp focus on building creative and digital skills at the grassroots level.
“We propose to set up AVGC content creator labs in 15,000 secondary schools and 500 colleges across the country through the Indian Institute of Creative Technologies,” Sitharaman said in her Budget speech, positioning the initiative as a talent pipeline for India’s fast-expanding creator and gaming ecosystem.
WAVES 2025 laid the foundation
The Budget announcement follows the roadmap unveiled at the WAVES Summit in May 2025, where Prime Minister Narendra Modi urged global creators to “Create in India, Create for the World,” pitching India’s film, gaming, animation, music and digital content industries as the backbone of the country’s orange economy. At the summit, Modi announced ₹391 crore for setting up the first Indian Institute of Creative Technology as a dedicated creator school, while IT minister Ashwini Vaishnaw announced a separate ₹830 crore fund to strengthen the creator economy through capital access, skilling and global market integration.
India currently has an estimated 35–45 lakh active content creators, with the broader creator ecosystem crossing 100 million, according to industry estimates. Growing at a 22% CAGR, the sector already influences 17–20% of India’s consumption spend, translating into an economic impact of ₹1.65–2.1 lakh crore. With AVGC labs now moving into schools and colleges, Budget 2026 marks a decisive step in institutionalising the creator economy as a long-term growth engine.
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