South India spends most on higher education

MUMBAI: Education may be priceless, but the promise of a degree has seen parents across India foot large bills. Those from the rural and urban pockets of southern states spend the most, largely sign up at a private university and finance their children’s dream of a technical education. On average, higher educationaccounts for 15.3% of the total household expenditure in rural and 18.4% in urban areas. In the south, the corresponding figures are 43% and 38%.

The data is part of a recent study titled ‘Household Expenditure on Higher Education in India: What do we know and what does recent data have to say’. In absolute terms, families from urban parts of south India spend an average of Rs 49,690 a year on higher education, closely followed by the western states, where it is Rs 45,436. In rural areas, the southern states have an average per-student expenditure of Rs. 36,063, which makes up a whopping 43% of their annual household expenditure. This is followed by the northern states, where the annual average expense is Rs 25,143 (see box).

“For the average citizen, higher education does not come cheap. Most families spend a third of their consumption expenditure, expecting a better return on their investment,” said S Chandrasekhar, professor, Indira Gandhi Institute of Development Research, Mumbai, and one of the authors of the study. The other co-authors of the study are P Geetha Rani of Central University of Tamil Nadu, Thiruvarur, and Soham Sahoo of University of Goettingen, Germany.

[Source”timesofindia”]