Kashmiri youth are waiting for an opportunity to chase their dreams, but the limited career options in the Valley are not allowing them to spread their wings.
More than 70% of population of J&K is below 35 years ofage. The numbers are more or less the same for Kashmir alone where chronicunemployment and under-employment has spawned the problems.
In such a scenario, the lack of job prospects has resultedin too many youth, ready to take off in their career, sitting idle and yearningfor the opportunities to excel like their counterparts in other states.
Greater Kashmir spoke to number of young people, in the agegroup of 18 to 30, only to find that the major worry they narrated was theabsence of livelihood opportunities within the state.
A contractual teacher, Abrar Ahmad believes that youngpeople can play a distinct role in socio-economic and political development oftheir communities. After a brief pause, he continued. “Education and livelihoodoptions that support development of relevant skills and capacity can bettersupport youth to constructively contribute to their communities and Kashmirisociety as a whole.”
“But, where are the opportunities,” he rued.
Having completed his PhD and qualified the NET as well Ahmadis working as contractual lecturer for the past six years. “Where will I gofrom here now? Mine is a gone case now,” he sighed.
For young college students like Shakir Hussain majority ofthe educated youth don’t prefer to move outside the state given Kashmir is awell-knit society.
He says given a chance educated youth would prefer job orventure into some kind of economical activity in the valley itself.
“But who care,” he commented. “Neither the successivegovernment nor the politicians have been able to address the growingunemployment by exploring and opening up other avenues of employment in theValley,” said Hussain, a 1st year student at SP College.
A resident of Kulgam, Hussain is currently putting up in arented apartment in Srinagar, along with his siblings. His elder brother,Muteen has completed post graduation and is now desperately looking for a job.
“What I have felt is that owing to lack of development andinvestment in Kashmir particularly, there are less opportunities among youthwhich pushes them towards anti-social activities,” argued Muteen, adding it wasthe responsibility of the state and central governments to respond to cry forlack of career opportunities in the Valley.
Many youth believe that mis-governance, poor administrationand corruption have been the biggest problems of the state, fuelling alienationamong youth.
“But the youth of Kashmir are now no longer willing totolerate corruption, inequality and nepotism,” said Muhammad Iqbal, apostgraduate.
At SP College, scores of students were basking in the sunduring class break. Asked about their future plans, they gave a grim look.
“There is hardly any opportunity. The jobs in the governmentsector are distributed by ministers, bureaucrats and top officials among theirkith and kin. Corruption is at its peak. My appeal to Prime Minister NarendraModi is to eradicate corruption from the state. It would be his biggest serviceto Kashmiri youth,” said one of the students who identified himself as Ahmad.
But, all of expressed this concern in unison. “Owing tothree decades of violence development has taken a backseat and corruption hasbecome a norm,” the students said.