Srinagar, April 13 -- The coaching economy in Kashmir has moved from the margins to the center. Classrooms empty out by afternoon, and learning continues in cramped rooms, glowing screens, and late-night test batches. Families now budget around coaching fees the way they once planned around school fees alone.

Nearly one in three students depends on private tutoring across India. Formal schooling no longer commands full trust.

Aspiration and anxiety fuel this growth together. Competitive exams promise upward mobility, and coaching institutes market themselves as the only reliable bridge to that future.

Cities like Kota have transformed exam preparation into an industry worth thousands of crores, drawing over a lakh students annually and...