An Analysis of Factors Affecting Private Expenditure on Education in India

Private expenditure on education is a determining factor for ensuring an individual’s educational progress. Though the government provides a vast infrastructure at minimal cost, the individuals have to incur cost from their pockets for various purposes. In this study, we have analysed the various influences on private expenditure on education based on National Sample Survey 71st round conducted in 2014. We have found that household consumer expenditure, respondent’s age, medium of instruction dummy, private coaching dummy and household computer dummy affect private expenditure on education positively, and household size, rural dummy, female dummy, social group dummies, minority religion dummy and type of school dummy affect private expenditure on education negatively. The important policy implications are the tendency to spend less for the female child needs to be amended and the male and female child needs to be given same preference when it comes to expenditure on education. Family planning should be implemented effectively to keep the household size reasonably small for better educational access of an individual. The weaker social groups such as STs, SCs and OBCs and the minorities should be supported well by scholarships and stipends for furthering their education. The number of government institutions should increase to provide low-cost education to society. English medium schools should be made to offer more seats for the financially weak. Private coaching should be made as redundant as possible by improving teaching in the schools. For having computer in households, the financially weak should get some subsidy or may be community computer centres can cater to their needs at reduced cost or free of cost. JEL: I25, I22