Srinagar, Aug. 4 -- Earlier this summer, outside SMHS Hospital in Srinagar, a carpenter waited in the shade with his wife. She rested on his shoulder as they stood in line for her prescriptions.

Her heart medicine costs Rs.3,500 a month, about half of what he earns.

"We skip meals sometimes," he said. "She misses doses when we can't afford them. I borrow when there's no other way."

The carpenter's story is not an exception. It's becoming the rule in Kashmir, where healthcare is turning into a punishing economic burden.

With strained public hospitals, pricey private care, and patchy insurance coverage, falling sick now means falling behind.

Rural areas face the hardest blows. In 2024, government records showed only 1,030 out of 1,677 ...