Srinagar, June 18 -- Irshad Mushtaq

Jammu and Kashmir values education. Official and research-based sources show that general literacy in J&K is around the low-80s and is broadly in line with, or slightly above, the national average. But financial literacy is a different matter. National surveys and state-level studies show that only about one in four Indian adults meet minimum financial literacy standards, while J&K falls in the middle-to-lower range on financial literacy and financial inclusion.This difference is important because a society can read books and still fail to read money. A family may know how to sign forms, use a smartphone and send children to school, but still struggle with budgeting, emergency savings, debt discipline,...