RISING EDUCATION COSTS TURN ASPIRATIONS INTO BURDENS

THE recent surge in education costs in India has sparked widespread concern, as highlighted by a parent's recent outburst on X.

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The parent expressed outrage over the steep rise in fees for lower kindergarten in a Hyderabad school from 2.3 lakh to 3.7 lakh per year.

While this may seem an isolated case at a top-tier institution, it underscores a broader, undeniable trend: India's education costs have escalated sharply over the years.

Between 2014 and 2018, the cost of primary education in India increased 30.7 percent, while graduate and postgraduate courses saw hikes of 5.8 percent and 13.19 percent respectively. The National Sample Survey Office report from 2020 revealed the average expenditure on education had nearly doubled over the previous decade. In rural areas, the annual cost per student rose from ₹5,856 in 2008 to 12,345 in 2018, while in urban areas, it surged from 12,000 to 28,000.

The All India Survey on Higher Education 2020-21 report further shows tuition fees for engineering courses in private institutions have increased by over 50 percent in the last decade. Education inflation, which briefly dipped to 0.63 percent during the pandemic in April 2021, climbed to 4.12 percent a year later. Now, it hovers around 11-12 percent.

The rise is attributed to various factors, including infrastructure development, higher faculty salaries, and technological advancements. Statistics indicate a rising burden on people due to increasing tuition fees and declining government funding.

State-level disparities exacerbate this issue, creating inequality and limiting access to education for disadvantaged groups.