It’s Just You And Me

For decades, the picture of the middle-class Indian dream of a perfect life didn’t change: owning a home and a car and having a happy married life with children. Hum Do Hamare Do! While millions still aspire for it, the definition of that perfect picture is changing for a growing number of people. The car, the house and the happy marriage are still there, but the children are increasingly being pushed out. India is steadily witnessing the rise of couples who are labelled double-income-no-kids (DINKS).

Data from the National Family Health Survey (NFHS-4 2015-2016) showed that approximately 7 per cent of married women between the ages of 40 and 49 were childless. More recent data from the NFHS-5 (2019-2021) shows that there was a significant increase in childlessness as nearly 12 per cent of married women between the ages of 40 and 49 were found to be childless. According to Gitnux Market Data Report 2024, the population of DINKS in India has been growing by 30 per cent per annum. Mind it, this may not only be a fertility issue; there are other factors playing a big role in these decisions.

The Rise Of DINKS

The term DINKS is not new. Its origin dates back to 1980s America. Couples then decided to opt out of having children, citing a range of reasons, such as greater flexibility and shifting cultural priorities. Notably, this trend came amid a rise in yuppie culture (young upwardly-mobile professionals) wherein a shift was seen towards prioritising wealth, and luxurious lifestyles.

Cut to 2025 and the reasons seem different. According to the UN Population Fund’s (UNFPA) State of World Population report, economic barriers were the top factors for not having children. According to the report, 39 per cent of respondents cited financial limitations as the main reason for having fewer children than they would like.

While the choice to not have children may stem from a multitude of reasons, the financial aspect becomes key amid the rising cost of living in urban India. The rising cost of living has a direct bearing on the amount of money required for raising children, owing to increased healthcare costs and high fees charged by educational institutions.

Of course, the financial challenge is huge primarily on account of couples wanting to provide the perfect life to children, including best-of-the-class healthcare and education, without any compromises.

The Pressure Is Real

Rising Cost Of Healthcare: Let’s begin from the start. Data from the NFHS-5 survey shows that the cost of institutional child deliveries has risen significantly. The average out-of-pocket expenditure for a single institutional delivery in a public health facility rose from Rs 2,925 in 2015-16 to Rs 8,559 in 2019-21. For those opting for private healthcare facilities, the costs were significantly higher, up from Rs 22,098 to Rs 27,337 in the same time period.

The costs for deliveries can also rise up to Rs 2 lakh or more in private hospitals, depending on the location. The C-Sec phenomenon is also a financial curse for aspiring parents given its prescription and adoption by parents-to-be.

Then comes the next stage. Non-discretionary spending such as vaccination can cost between Rs 30,000 and Rs 75,000 in the first year of birth, based on the vaccination schedule prescribed by the Indian Academy of Pediatrics.

Healthcare needs as the child grows older will only rise.

Rising Cost Of Education: Manasvi Garg, a chartered financial analyst (CFA) and founder of MoneyVesta Wealth says the estimated cost of having and raising a child currently ranges between Rs 38 lakh and Rs 45 lakh. “Education costs are rising fast. Recent reports show that raising one child in an Indian city now costs tens of lakhs of rupees. Education inflation in India has risen 10-12 per cent annually, and it is estimated that the total spend from birth (multiple healthcare, education and miscellaneous expenses parents are likely to incur) through college can reach Rs 38-45 lakh per child.”

This estimate doesn’t include an international education that so many parents want for their children now. Vaibhav Agarwal, CFA and CIO at Accelt Asset Management, says: “Depending on the aspirations of the parents, the total cost of raising the child and funding their education can greatly vary. For parents who wish to provide their children an education within India, the cost can go up to Rs1 crore-1.5 crore and for parents who wish to send their children abroad for their studies the cost can go up to Rs 4 crore-5 crore.”

The Rationale

The high costs can translate into immense pressure for newly-wed couples and early-career professionals, and DINKs are voicing their concerns. Some of them are talking freely about their decisions on social media such as the Childfree India (CFI) community on Reddit. Multiple content creators on YouTube have talked about their decision to opt for a DINK lifestyle, due to multiple factors, including rising costs.

Cassandra Goveas, 30, a technical writer, and her husband Brenton Pereira, 36, who works in sales operations, in Bengaluru, who are part of the CFI Reddit community, told Outlook Money that the decision to opt for the DINK lifestyle has led to greater financial freedom and lower fiscal pressures for the couple.

Says Cassandra: “Raising a child is expensive. If we had a child, we’d obviously want the best for them and that doesn’t come cheap. However, the money saved by not raising a child can be redirected to our interests like travelling and reading. There’s no pressure to save for specific milestones like the higher education or wedding of your children. The money saved can also be saved for retirement, so we look forward to an earlier retirement.”

A Pune-based couple in their late 20s, who requested anonymity, say: “The costs of raising a child are unbelievable. Primary education alone (at least the urban, gated-community-sensibility one) is exorbitant and unreasonable.” They add that the rising cost of raising children is among the primary reasons that motivated their choice to not have children.

Cost Is Not The Only Reason: Couples cite other reasons, too, for not having children.

The Pune-based couple said that while the decision to not have children is stigmatised in society, they have made the choice basis a moral cause. “I’d say, most people outside the two of us see this decision as a free pass to splurge, travel, etc., but the only difference it has made so far is that we have a decent lifestyle, rather than just living paycheque to paycheque. We thought we are not doing anything to improve the social and political conditions in the country. So we feel we can’t bring a child into the world,” says one of them.

For a lot of couples, however, it’s also about freedom and flexibility. Aradhana Solomon (31) and Abhishek Nag (32), a Raipur-based couple who run a cloud kitchen and upload content on their YouTube channel, shared that they have chosen to opt for the DINK lifestyle for the freedom and flexibility they have compared to their peers and cousins who have children.

Says Aradhana: “We are financially and emotionally free. Our peers or those in our friend circle, or cousins, now have children’s school, routine and lifestyle to take care of. They have become so set and bound in it that they personally don’t have time.”

Not An Easy Decision

In the Indian context, where even relatives start asking subtly, if not directly, about children soon after marriage, the decision to not have children is not always easy. So, in some cases, it is still a hush-hush decision. The Pune-based couple mentioned earlier in the story have decided not to have children, but have not communicated that with their parents yet.

But there are some couples who are on the fence. What can help them is planning in advance.

According to Garg, timing is the key and starting the financial planning process even before the pregnancy can help. “The earlier you start, the better. Waiting until pregnancy or toddlerhood leaves very little time to accumulate the needed corpus. Welcoming a baby should be seen as a milestone that calls for foresight and careful planning, much like any major investment in life. In practice this means initiating savings from the day of marriage (or even before), not after the baby arrives.”

Once that decision is made, the next step is to become organised and meticulous about the financial plan. Says Agarwal: “Start early by creating a financial plan and define short-, medium- and long-term goals. Build an emergency fund, take adequate term and health insurance, and begin systematic investment plans (SIPs) in equity mutual funds for long-term goals. The earlier you start, the lower will be the monthly investment.”

He adds that newly-weds can consider investing in equity mutual funds and index funds for long-term growth, such as higher education; in hybrid or balanced advantage funds for medium-term goals, such as schooling; and liquid and debt funds for short-term needs in the early years of the child’s growing-up phase.

There’s no right or wrong decision when it comes to having or not having children, as it could depend on various reasons and life situations. But if you do want to have a child, remember that it needs proper financial planning, which requires a fair share of discipline, patience and, at times, sacrifices in terms of not fulfilling certain wants. Of course, DINKs, too, need a financial plan to secure their future and retirement.

Having a child is always an additional responsibility, not just financially but also emotionally. Think carefully before making this important decision.

ayush.khar@outlookindia.com