“The power of youth is the common wealth for the entire world. The faces of young people are the faces of our past, our present and our future. No segment in the society can match with the power, idealism, enthusiasm and courage of the young people.” – Kailash Satyarthi
It is a well-known fact that the youth of Kashmir is a great asset. They are indeed the future of the country and represent it at every level. The role of Kashmiri youth in nation-building is more important than you might think. In other words, the intelligence and work of the youth of Kashmir will take the country on the pathway of success. As every citizen of country is equally responsible, the youth of Kashmir is too. They are the building blocks of a country. The youth of Kashmir is important because they will be our future. Today they might be our partners, tomorrow they will go on to become leaders. The youth of Kashmir is very energetic and enthusiastic. They have the ability to learn and adapt to the environment. Similarly, they are willing to learn and act on it as well to achieve their goals.Our youth can bring social reform and improvement in society. We cannot make do without the youth of a country. Furthermore, the nation requires their participation to achieve the goals and help in taking the country towards progress.
The recent killing of militants in year 2020 in various district of Kashmir is very rightly being hailed as a successful operations which will break the backbone of violence in the region. There is also a realisation that violence, though greatly reduced, has now taken a local sheen; all the killed were local youth.
The situation brings forward an urgent need to engage with the youth and wean them away from the desire to pick up the gun for a non-existent, self destructive cause. There is a need to look deeply into the reasons behind the frustration that leads the youth towards pursuing mindless violence, and taking all necessary steps to stop the same.
A major reason for this is the lack of economic opportunity which leads to unemployment and frustration. Kashmir is experiencing a “youth bulge,” where 71 percent of the population is under the age of 35. Sadly, a large section of population between the age of 18 to 30 in the Kashmir Valley, an estimated 48 percent, is currently unemployed.
The fragile socio-political landscape, affected by continuing violent conflict and instability, has created a deep sense of uncertainty amongst the local population, particularly the youth. Kashmiri youth have grown up in this adverse environment and have faced tremendous stress. Feeling of desperation, anger and helplessness is largely prevalent among them .
Pakistan exploits the situation by carrying out well honed, effective propaganda to stoke fires of dissent and dissension. Many youth get swayed by the false propaganda and adverse publicity.
While the Army has played the role of a protector, well conducted propaganda by the enemy has led to the force being seen by Kashmiris, particularly the youth, as an instrument of Government of India’s policy to curb their freedom.
The government of India has launched a number of schemes to provide employment to youth in the state. Infrastructure in terms of schools, colleges, community development centers, ITIs etc. has also been established to impart quality education and generate self-employment opportunities. Besides, a good amount of stress has been laid in the field of sports to encourage the young to channelise their energies in the right direction and also pick up sports as a career.
Winning “Hearts and Minds”
Various separatist groups in Kashmir have conveniently exploited the sentiments of Kashmiri youth and misguided them for their own selfish gains. They lose no opportunity to exploit sensitive situations, disrupt the functioning of government and engineer deterioration of the law and order situation. They look for opportunities to use propaganda as a tool for their nefarious designs.
Some segments of the media in Kashmir act in a manner that causes damage to the psyche of the youth. For sensational copy it overplays violence; in some instances, for the sake of monetary gains, it exaggerates facts in a manner that shows the state and the security forces in poor light. All of this contributes towards instigating the masses, particularly the youth.
The solution to the issues lies with the people. They have to generate the will to give peace a chance so that the development activities can be carried forward. With development will come jobs that will channelise the energy of the youth towards productive pursuits .
The state government, the elders and the civil society of Kashmir have to play a vital role to removing the prevailing feeling of hatred and frustration that envelopes’ the youth of the Valley. This is undoubtedly a long term process but a beginning has to be made.
It cannot be denied that the government is attempting to remain focused on the issue of development despite the law and order challenges. Launching of employment generating programs like ‘Hamayat’ and ‘Udan’ are steps in the right direction. A lot more, however, needs to be done and that too in a time bound manner.
Education needs to be given priority! Curriculums have to be designed in a manner that the youth gain confidence to compete at the national and international level. More and more students need to be sponsored for education in other states to widen the base.
The passion that the youth have for games needs should be leveraged. Searching, nurturing and talent should be followed with providing opportunities to compete within the state and in larger platforms.
The government needs to create an environment to encourage more investment in the state, especially in private sector, which will increase employment opportunities for youth.
Army, by virtue of its vast organisation and spread in remote places, continues to hold potential for playing a vital role. Efforts by the army to reach out to the youth have been well appreciated by Kashmiri society. This is an area that needs more traction since it will accrue the best results.
There is a need to bring about a realisation that the Army and other security forces have, with great effort over a sustained period of time and with tremendous loss of lives of soldiers, brought down the levels of terrorism to a threshold that allows the apparatus of the state and the society to function in a modicum of normalcy. There are still terrorists to be tackled but the numbers are comparatively small and reducing by the day.
It is equally important to side line the separatist groups responsible for constantly installing hatred amongst the youth. This can be done by exposing their leaders who have been carrying out false propaganda to suit their agendas.
Media too needs to be motivated to channelise its power and energy in the right direction. It can play a key role in reducing the venom that exists amongst the Kashmiri Awaam by bringing forth true facts.
Youth should become the centre of gravity of the government policy to curb terrorism in Jammu and Kashmir. Sincere efforts in this direction have the potential of changing the socio-political landscape of the trouble torn region.
There are many ways in which we can help the youth of Kashmir to achieve their potential. For that, the government of India must introduce programs that will help in fighting off issues like unemployment, poor education institutes and more to help them prosper without any hindrance.
Similarly, citizens must make sure to encourage youth of Kashmir valley to do better in every field. When we constantly discourage our youth of valley and don’t believe in them, they will lose their spark. We all must make sure that they should be given the wind beneath their wings to fly high instead of bringing them down by tying chains to their wings.
Furthermore, equal opportunities must be provided for all irrespective of caste, creed, gender, race, religion and more. There are various issues of nepotism and favoritism that is eating away the actual talent of the country. This must be done away with as soon as possible. We must make sure that every youth has the chance to prove themselves worthy and that must be offered equally to all.
In short, youth of Kashmir valley has the power to build a nation so we must give them the opportunity. They are the future and they have the perspective which the older generations lack. Their zeal and enthusiasm must be channelized properly to help a nation prosper and flourish.