SRINAGAR: Despite multiple government orders mandating a 50% fare discount for students, poor enforcement continues to burden school and college goers across Jammu and Kashmir. Many students say the policy exists only on paper, while they face daily harassment, financial strain often forcing them to drop out of education altogether.
For many students, the arduous journey to education begins before entering the classroom – on crowded buses – learning, becoming a privilege rather than a right when they must fight to overcome transportation barriers that keep them from classrooms, with unaffordable bus fares turning simple commutes into insurmountable obstacles.
Government Orders on Student Fare Discount
The first official order granting a 50% concession on public transport fares for students was issued in 2017 (Notification No. 05P-MVD of 2017, dated 22-06-2017). The policy allowed students to pay half fare while traveling between their residence and educational institution, provided they carried a valid student ID.
This order was reaffirmed in 2018 (Notification No. 02P-MVD of 2018, dated 16-08-2018) and again in 2021 (Notification No. 01P-MVD of 2021, dated 19-03-2021), confirming that students remain entitled to the discount
Choosing Labour Over Learning
Ground reality, however, is different.
Parvez Ahmad Dar, a college dropout from Sopore, said, he quit education after the fare burden became too heavy, highlighting how the cost of travel outweighed the value of opportunity.
“If the government had truly enforced the discount, I’d still be in college,” Dar said. He traveled 40 kilometers daily, spending ₹70 every day like regular passengers. “My pocket was empty, and the government's order was just a piece of paper,” he said.
He described the daily humiliation of asking conductors for half fare. “They treated us like beggars. There were fights, arguments. Eventually, I gave up,” he says, talking about how his dreams were throttled.
Feroz Mir, a BCA student from Baramulla, in early 2023 dropped out in his final semester. “I was paying ₹90 every day for my commute. Some conductors accepted half the fare, but most didn’t. I started borrowing money just to attend classes.”
Instead of pursuing his education, he is now forced to take up a job as a labourer for sustenance and clearing his debts. “I hope the other students don’t suffer like I did,” he says, revealing signs of having given up hope of returning to education and a better life.
Dr Ajaz Gilani, a sociology expert, said the lack of affordable transportation is a major barrier to education in Kashmir.
"Many students depend on public transport, but high fares and the failure to enforce the 50% discount disrupts their studies," Gilani says. Those from remote areas often skip college due to exhausting and expensive commutes. Safety concerns, especially for female students, add to the problem.
He said the government has introduced e-buses services, but without proper enforcement of student fare discounts, transportation will continue to be a challenge. "Policies take time, but delays mean that students keep suffering," he says.
Female Students Bear the Greater Brunt
Aiman, a college student from Pulwama, echoes the same sentiment but hasn’t given up. “But it’s exhausting to argue every day. You end up feeling like you’re begging for something that’s already promised,” she says.
“I carry my ID everywhere, but it’s worthless.”
Aiman says she often pays full fare just to avoid arguments in the public. “It’s not worth the emotional toll. One day, a conductor told me, ‘Don’t study if you can’t afford it.’ That phrase still hauntingly rings in my head,” she revealed to the Kashmir Times.
She said the policy seems to depend on the mood of the conductor. Some days they take half the fare without a word. Other days they laugh or shout. It’s like flipping a coin.
The impact, she says, goes beyond embarrassment. “I’ve missed classes and even reached the exam centres late because I walked instead of taking a bus. Nobody thinks missing a class leads to dropping out, but it does. You miss one, you fall behind, you start doubting yourself. And then you think may be education isn’t meant for people like us,” she says, half dismayed.
At the Narbal bus stop, Maryam, a student from Tangmarg, says female students often face verbal abuse and dismissal when asking for the discount.
“Conductors just wave us off, saying they don’t know about any student discount,” she said. “Many girls choose to pay full fare to avoid arguments or stares.”
She said the situation slightly improved last month when a social activist began pasting official fare orders on buses. “For the first time, I saw conductors accepting half fare but only on a few routes. Why does it take public shaming for a law to be respected?”
Mujtaba, a student from Pampore talks about the campaign started by a local political and social activist Jibran Dar who began pasting fare orders on buses.
“The discount has existed since 2017 but was never respected,” Dar told the Kashmir Times. “I took official orders and pasted them on buses.”
Though, he claims that after this the students have begun receiving their rightful discount, many students say that the impact was limited. “At least, it helped spotlight a long-ignored issue,” says Mujtaba, but adds, “most buses still defy the rules.”
Limited Discounts and Costs for Transporters
In Baramulla, a 25-year-old student from the Government Degree College said at Baramulla bus stand, some conductors impose their own limits. “They told me only the first five students in the bus can get the discount,” he said.
He once spent 15 minutes arguing with a conductor who refused to honor his ID. “The worst part? The bus was full of students, but no one spoke up.”
While students blame the bus operators, transporters say they're willing to cooperate but not without help.
“If the government wants full compliance, they must share the cost,” says a driver Bashir Ahmad operating from Srinagar to different district routes. “We’re not against students, but we have families too. Diesel, documentation, maintenance it all adds up."
Transporters say running costs have shot up due to high fuel prices, maintenance, and paperwork, with each trip costing around ₹2,000 especially on longer routes like Srinagar to Baramulla.
With diesel giving just 4 km per litre and 10 to 15 students boarding daily, most paying half, operators say they’re running at a loss. Despite raising the issue with the transporters, there’s no compensation scheme in place. Some suggest limiting half fare seats to 7–10 students per trip to make the system more manageable.
Some transporters have already started their own rationalization of discounts.
Sajad Ahmad Chopan, chairman of the Sopore Matador Stand, which operates hundreds of vehicles across Dangiwacha, Baramulla, and Zaingeer, says they provide a 50% discount, but only to the first four students per trip.
"We allow four students per trip to pay half fare, but beyond that, we can’t afford it," Chopan says. "Our drivers spend over ₹1 lakh annually on paperwork and vehicle maintenance. If the government provided some relief on these expenses, we could extend the 50% discount to all students."
A Ground Reality Check
To understand the depth of the issue, the Kashmir Times conducted a cross-section of interviews with students boarding buses on different routes. In many cases, students confirmed conductors either rejected their IDs or imposed arbitrary caps. A few routes particularly in areas recently covered by the activists' campaigns were exceptions where discounts were acknowledged.
Physically verifying multiple routes also revealed the inconsistent implementation. On some routes, bus conductors reluctantly accepted the discount. On others, students were turned away or forced to pay full fare despite showing ID cards.
Mujtaba, waiting for a bus at the Pantha Chowk bus stop, says, “Ever since the government issued the fare discount order, it rarely works. Conductors treated us like we were asking for charity. There are days I skip class just to avoid the daily humiliation.”
Responding to queries about poor implementation of the student fare discount scheme, Irfan Ahmad, Regional Transport Officer (RTO), Kashmir, says, “We’ve issued a clear order mandating a 50% fare discount for all students private and government transport alike.”
“Unless there’s a proper system where students can report violations without fear, this discount will remain a rule on paper,” said Mujtaba. “A policy is only as strong as its implementation and right now, students are still bearing the cost.” He said most students avoid raising complaints fearing backlash from transporters or traffic officials. “Without accountability, the gap between policy and reality will keep growing.”
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