Steep school fees force 1-child norm

NEW DELHI: Rising school expenses are forcing young parents in India to have only one child, a study by a business chamber says.

The study by the social development foundation of the Associated Chamber of Commerce and Industry of India (Assocham) found the average tuition fee for a child at private schools in large cities to be around Rs35,000 annually. In India, more than 30 million children are now educated in private schools. And their parents are being bled financially, Assocham said.

Apart from the regular fees, parents spend an additional Rs30,000-Rs35,000 annually on uniforms, extra curricular activities, textbooks, stationery, school funds, sports and excursions, among others. Transport comes to an average of Rs12,000 per child annually, lunch costs Rs9,600, footwear expense is  Rs4,000-Rs5,000, and uniforms account for Rs3,500-4,500. In contrast, textbooks—the most essential component of education - come to about Rs3,000.

“School costs have risen at more than double the rate of inflation,” the survey said. But the annual income of parents surveyed has not increased by more than 28-30% during the period.