A parent says educating two daughters costs ₹26,000 a month, while annual expenses could reach ₹1.5 lakh per child, highlighting the growing financial burden on Kashmiri families.
The rising cost of education in Jammu and Kashmir has sparked fresh concerns over affordability, with a parent highlighting the financial burden of school fees, transportation, uniforms, books and other expenses.
In a post raising questions about the affordability of quality education in Kashmir, the parent revealed that the monthly school expenses for two daughters amount to ₹26,000. The parent also shared that ₹7,950 was recently spent on books alone, without including basic stationery such as pens and pencils.
According to the post, the overall annual expenditure on one child, including tuition fees, transportation, uniforms, annual charges and books, can reach approximately ₹1.5 lakh.
The parent further compared these expenses with Kashmir’s stated average monthly per capita income of ₹14,000, questioning how ordinary families can manage such high education costs.
While some may argue that books cost only ₹10 per day, the parent pointed out that the actual financial burden is significantly higher when all school-related expenses are considered. The post highlighted that the effective daily expenditure could reach around ₹425 per child.
Raising concerns about the affordability of private education, the parent described the rising cost as a barrier rather than an opportunity, arguing that education should not become accessible only to families who can afford increasingly expensive schooling.
The post also questioned the availability of government schools as an alternative, claiming that Jammu and Kashmir has 4,386 fewer government schools compared with 2021–22.
Concluding with a question directed at parents across the region, the writer asked families to share their monthly expenditure per child, including school fees and transportation costs, while also encouraging parents whose children attend government schools to participate in the discussion.
The post has brought attention to a larger question: Is quality education in Kashmir becoming increasingly unaffordable for ordinary families?
