Over the years, the number of students from Kashmir appearing in different national level competitive exams has considerably increased. From medical sciences to engineering and other competitive exams, students from the Valley are seen competing in all these examinations; it speaks of their passion, determination and competence to excel in different fields of their choice.
In view of the prevailing circumstances where schools, colleges and universities are closed for the past two years, these students need more encouragement and cordial atmosphere to facilitate them in excelling in all these competitive exams.
Over the years, students from Kashmir Valley have performed well in almost all the national-level competitive exams, including NEET, GATE and others. This is despite the disruptions caused by the turmoil as well as frequent internet blockades, and other odds. These students have set a new trend, which encourages the new generation to compete, not only in the national-level examinations, but at the international level as well.
Scores of students from Kashmir have been awarded international fellowships and scholarships to pursue their careers. However, amidst all this determination and passion, the students from Kashmir, who appear in the national-level competitive exams, feel discouraged, particularly because the exam conducting bodies, as well the local government, hardly make an effort to have their examination centers established in the Valley.
Having the examination centers outside Kashmir makes the aspirants from the Valley feel dejected as well as being unfairly treated in comparison to their counterparts elsewhere in the country.
The lack of examination centers is subjecting the students to great mental agony as the exam conducting bodies do not allot the examination centres for Kashmir students within the Valley itself. The students are given an option to choose their exam centres either in Jammu or in other states, outside the J&K UT.
“Such a discriminatory approach adopted by the exam conducting bodies only discourages the students from participating in the competitive exams as they are forced to sit in the exams outside the Valley which is not only cumbersome but logistically troublesome too,” said a group of students aspiring to sit in the next NEET examination.
Many students are seen running from pillar to post to get their exam centres allotted in Valley but to no avail.
While the students in other states are facilitated with the exam centres in their catchment areas, the students from Valley have to follow a hectic schedule for appearing in these exams. The students from the Valley, including girl students, have to make boarding and lodging arrangements at places where their examination centers are located.
Many a time, the travel plans—as well as dreams to sit in the competitive examinations—are spoiled by bad weather in the Valley that causes frequent cancellation of flights as well as closure of the Srinagar-Jammu highway, the only surface link of Kashmir with the rest of the country.
“Under these circumstances the last minute preparation of students gets disturbed. This discriminatory approach of the exam conducting bodies and the laxity of the J&K government to address the problem must end once and for all,” students from the Valley said and demanded the personal intervention of the Lieutenant Governor in taking up this matter with the exam conducting bodies.
Besides going through the hectic schedule, the participation of students becomes a costly affair as well.
As most of the times the Jammu-Srinagar highway remains blocked and aspirants have to bear the expenses of air travel when the tickets are sold at exorbitant rates amid the closure of highway.
In 2019, the aspirants of Graduate Aptitude Test in Engineering (GATE) were subjected to mental agony after their exam centres were allotted in Jammu. The exam was scheduled in February when the Jammu-Srinagar highway remains blocked due to inclement weather. Also, the price of air tickets goes high during the closure of the highway which makes it almost impossible for the aspirants to appear in their exams.
After facing mental agony for weeks, around 180 GATE aspirants of Valley in February 2019 were airlifted by government in Indian Air Force (IAF) Plane on the day of their examination. The students had to go through a mental trauma till the last moment.
Had the government taken the career of students seriously, it would have proven beneficial for the candidates. But ironically, the government never takes such situations seriously which will prove beneficial for the students. Every year the students have to face this mental agony while preparing for the competitive exams.
Few years ago, the aspirants of the Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR) exams were also forced to travel outside the Valley to appear in the national exam.
The NEET UG aspirants also used to go through the same mental trauma, but after facing massive criticism, the National Testing Agency (NTA) started allocation of adequate exam centres for the NEET UG aspirants in Valley.
But this did not solve the problem at all as aspirants of other competitive exams are still allotted their exam centres outside Valley causing inconvenience to them.
Recently, the National Board of Exams (NBE) notified the date for holding NEET PG exams and majority of the candidates from Kashmir were allotted exam centres in Jammu.
The aspirants were made to run from pillar to post to get their exam centres allotted in Kashmir but they were left disappointed after the NBE refused to allot their exam centres in Valley despite the intervention of the J&K government.
The divisional administration had taken up the matter with the NBE-the exam conducting body, but the NBE did not agree to set up adequate exam centres in the Valley. With this the students were forced to book their tickets and plan their travel to Jammu for appearing in the exam scheduled on April 18.
As the candidates booked their tickets, the Union Health Minister Dr Harsh Vardhan announced postponement of the NEET PG exams till further orders. The decision to postpone the exam was taken for the well being of the students across India keeping in view the surge in the COVID-19 cases.
But again, the decision proved costly for the Valley students because they had booked their tickets and planned to travel by Air to Jammu to appear in the NEET PG -2021 exams. The candidates had planned their travel after the admit cards were issued by the exam conducting body.
Like other aggrieved candidates, a female aspirant from Valley had to incur expenditure worth Rs 24000 to book two air tickets for herself and her uncle who was supposed to accompany her to Jammu. The air fare from Srinagar to Jammu was Rs 8581 on April 17 on the day of booking while the return fare was Rs 3500 per ticket.
So, the government and the concerned exam conducting body did everything to disturb the students mentally and to also make students suffer through financial losses as well.
Such incidents will force the aspirants not to participate in such exams fearing financial losses as well as avoid the mental trauma. Majority of these students who opt for these competitive exams come from middle class families and cannot afford financial losses.
The J&K government should ensure all the students competing in national level exams are allotted exam centres within the Valley. The participation of the students in any competitive exams should not prove to be a costly affair for the aspirants. Rather, the government in consultation with the national level exam conducting bodies should encourage them to participate in such competitions to prove their mettle.