Is Anybody Listening?
Aakash Shabir
Myself, Aakash Shabir, a 3rd-year student of GDC Kulgam, had never imagined two years ago that I would be raising my voice about socio-political issues. I never paid heed to anything until I first stepped into the college premises. There, I felt something eccentric in my surroundings. A strange element was circulating in the atmosphere, which I couldn’t ignore. Unsettled, unresolved issues and grievances began to consume my mind frequently. I have constantly pondered and reflected on those issues, and some of the observations are listed here.
Being a student of the valley itself is a huge challenge. We all know how Kashmir’s education has been handicapped over all these years. This did not start from 2019 when Article 370 was abrogated; neither did it emanate from the 2016 uprising; the reality is that it has been going on for decades. The conflict here has torn the fabric of our socioeconomic system, wherein the education sector is the worst sufferer, adversely affecting the valley’s students mercilessly.
Frequent closure of colleges and schools have proven catastrophic to valley’s students. Suspension of classes seems like a daily routine, particularly in South Kashmir, where it causes immense exasperation. Thinking about our fate makes me anxious. Shall I call it misfortune or fate? Or the cost of our history? Who can change this and bring us relief?
Further disruptions in acquiring education have been exacerbated by syllabus curtailment, mass copying, lenient marking and lack of teacher accountability, all linked to the prolonged shutdowns.
There is also a huge problem in coping with mental and physical health. In many areas, the constant violence or threat of violence has led to mental health issues. It has stunted the intellectual development and physical growth of many. The situation is worsened by a lack of safe spaces for children. A 2014 study compared the mental health of children in Srinagar, Kashmir, to those in Kolkata. The students in Kashmir were found to be more than twice likely to suffer from poor mental and emotional health than those in Kolkata. This was attributed to the conflict in the region, and the instability caused. Given that the violence has worsened since 2016 and that the students examined were from middle-class backgrounds, it is likely that a similar study conducted today amongst a wider variety of students would show even worse results.
The dense militarization of areas leads to a negative psychological impact on children, which can cause high dropout rates and has certainly been the case in Kashmir, where many children feel scared of the school’s proximity to military camps.
A research study conducted by the Working Group on Peace, Conflict and Education at Columbia University found that 79% of the military camps were at a distance of less than 1km of the schools examined. Some of these schools and colleges even shared common borders with the camps. The children in these schools were reported to be feeling threatened and scared whilst in the presence of the military personnel. Moreover, due to the proximity of the camps, they were likely to be targets of regular frisking and questioning.
Regarding student politics and student unions, which form an essential ingredient of education like we see in JNU and Delhi University, here we lack that organizational structure that could have acted as our representative, as a face concerning various issues and grievances relating to academic or administrative problems. We are in dire need of a representative body, but there is no such concept here. We are denied the right, and I think we need to focus more on this thing; I would stress!
Being a conflict zone, the University of Kashmir and the Department of Education should revisit the curriculum to include areas that will create difference and bring better results rather than aggravating the already deplorable condition.
Career counselling cells need to be established at each and every College and Higher Secondary schools headed by Principals of the said Institutions.
There is a dire need for student exchange programmes- both intra and outer state. This will help in cultural and educational overlapping and learning.
Frequent Student- Police interactions to eliminate the element of otherness”. Police must organize Book fairs, debates, and festivals for students at zonal and district levels.
Counselling of Juveniles (mostly under age stone pelters) is currently only done at Hanwan Srinagar. There is a need to create such cells at every level, preferably in districts.
Monthly Police – Parent- Teachers – Student interaction programmes at zonal and district levels are required
Mental health programs for students in collaboration with the health department are mandatory in the conflict zone of J&K.
Employment awareness camps, preferably in rural areas /schools are required.
Vocational education must be made compulsory in the curriculum to provide students with an avenue to learn and earn together; this will redress the problem of unemployment at large in society. (unemployment is one of the root causes in Kashmir).
Moral education should be made necessary at every academic level. It will help in character building (ethics, morals & integrity), i.e., positive for peace and negative for violence.
Scholarships and awards for meritorious and deserving candidates hail from poor and marginalized backgrounds; this will encourage other poor students who easily fall in the trap of anti-social and anti-national elements
There is a lot of gender segregation in our institutions which, in turn, leads to gender discrimination in direct or indirect means and ways. While this is borne out of various socio-cultural factors, education should have been the medium to bridge the gap. However, if this gets perpetuated through educational institutions, we can hardly think of any remedy.
In sum, I would say that there are a lot more measures required to address our problems. There is a lot more to achieve. It is like travelling a thousand miles but remember, a journey of thousands of miles always begins with a single step.
This article is part of the series of articles Student Struggle is publishing on the issues faced by the students of Jammu and Kashmir.
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