When Welfare Turns Fair

By removing the education requirement from the Marriage Assistance Scheme, Jammu and Kashmir has taken a vital step toward equality, inclusion, and trust in governance.

- Irfan Jaffer

The recent decision by the Government of Jammu and Kashmir to remove the eighth-grade education requirement from the Marriage Assistance Scheme has opened a door long closed for many women.

This rule kept out the very women who needed help most for years.

Those who grew up in poverty, took care of families too soon, or lived in villages where schools were too far or too few were automatically disqualified.

By linking support to education, the state had unintentionally turned a welfare measure into a test of privilege.

The new policy sends a clear message: empowerment is not defined by a classroom, It’s defined by fairness.

Thousands of Kashmiri women who could not meet the earlier criteria will now qualify for assistance that can ease a major financial burden.

This change speaks directly to the idea that welfare must meet people where they are, not where we think they should be.

The move also highlights the values behind global development goals, especially those focused on gender equality and reducing inequality.