The Hindu : Tamil Nadu News : Hard times if you have small children

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Tuesday, Aug 19, 2008
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Tamil Nadu

Tamil Nadu

Hard times if you have small children

Meera Srinivasan

Nappies, formula milk, visits to the doctor and medicines all cost more now

Inflation is hard on all families, but especially so on families with small children. “Nappies and formula milk alone cost about Rs. 2,000 every month. The pressure is high even for upper middle class families,” says Renjini Mathew, a young mother.

As someone who decided to get back to academics after her son was born, she had to look for a full-time nanny to baby-sit her child. “With the nanny’s salary, the expenses on the child goes up to nearly Rs. 8,000 per month,” she says.

S. Ramchandran, an employee of Chellappa Medicals says formula milk is available from Rs. 100- Rs.120 and diapers, from Rs. 50- Rs. 80. “The prices of these products have not gone up now, but since several other things cost more than they used to, people are thinking twice before buying them,” he points out.

“Customers are enquiring about cheaper varieties. Companies have been also coming up with cheaper products to retain customers,” he adds.

Visits to the doctor and costs of vaccines and immunisation have also shot up. “My child’s physician who used to charge Rs. 100-Rs.150 per consultation is now charging Rs.250,” says R. Sunitha, mother of a two year old.

In fact, some couples confess that they are postponing having a child because of the spiralling costs. “We’ve been married for 3 years now and we’re fairly sure that having a child now is bad idea.

"We want to give our child the best education and good health. And these are are not very affordable now,” says Rahul Mahesh*, a software engineer.

R. Tamilselvi* says she and her husband are postponing a second child because they are having a difficult time bringing up the first given the rising prices. “We have a son who is about a year-and-a-half old. Though we want another child, we have decided we won’t have one in the next couple of years,” she says.

“I work for a private company and my wife does not work anymore as she has to take care of the child. Having two children is out of the question,” says her husband K. Rajkumar*, an employee with a private company.

* Some names have been changed on request.

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