The Kashmir Pulse

Just some days ago, a video went viral across social media platforms in which a P.hD scholar was seen selling dry fruits on a cart. Every individual having a mic in his one hand and a smartphone in his second hand was taking interviews from him and posing a series of unnecessary, trivial and worthless questions.

These pseudo-journalists, who are completely devoid of journalistic ethics and whose number is surging with each passing day across every corner of the Valley, were trying to garner wide viewership and inviting comments on an issue which is shattering the dreams of thousands of highly qualified and passionate individuals of this region who have burnt their midnight oil only to see themselves earning an honourable livelihood and living a respectable life in their later years.

This video was made viral within minutes and every Tom, Dick and Harry passed comments without realizing the pain these people have been enduring for years after completing their research degrees.

Passing degree after degree and qualifying myriad of exams have left them desperate, hopeless, dejected and downhearted. The degrees, which are in their possession, depict their diligent hard work and a big investment of their parents whose only motive had been to give their children a better education and make them able to earn a decent living.

However, due to meagre opportunities in the government sector and tough competition for every job, they are finding themselves in traumatic conditions where they are unable to understand what to do. Their life has become onerous and arduous, they are considered a burden even by their own family members.

After failing to grab a government job, these highly qualified youth are caught in a tricky situation and spending most of their precious time and years in gaining these qualifications has rendered them to rely on doing some odd jobs like selling dry fruits on a cart, initiating a dairy farm or doing any other business.

Gaining a P.hD degree after strenuous efforts from a university and qualifying the NET or SET—the eligibility exams for lecturership in a college and university—must have ensured a research scholar's job in an educational institution at a teaching position, but due to limited resources and finite avenues, even these highly qualified research scholar's are opting for inapt and ill-suited jobs. Sometimes, the situation takes so ugly a turn that they take an extreme step.

Opting for contractual jobs in colleges and universities is further worsening their condition rather than encouraging them to embrace this somewhat prestigious job. There are many reasons behind this. Lack of job security, disparities in the monthly salaries being paid to them in colleges and universities against what UGC has set in its guidelines and norms and assigning them extra workload in the workplace etc.

After spending years in these educational institutions to impart education and training thousands of students, a contractual lecturer's own future is put at risk because neither there is any policy of absorbing this talented and hardworking workforce in these colleges against vacant positions nor he is given any other grace point to enable him get a job in another department.

Their melancholic tales don't end here, but some of them have old-aged parents to look after and few are married too. The meagre amount paid to them can't bring a minuscule smile to their faces. It becomes tougher for them to manage with each passing day as inflation is touching the skies every other day.

After applying for contractual jobs, only a fixed lot gets an opportunity to work on ad-hoc basis in colleges and universities while the rest of them opt for other jobs. Talking about unemployment isn't the issue of P.hD scholars only, our big chunk of qualified youth are working in private schools too on peanut salaries.

The story doesn't end here rather a big proportion of professionally trained youth are also jobless who roam from pillar to post to get work. From our colleges and universities, an army of unemployed pass-outs are produced each year which adds to the already unemployed kitty of the UT.

To address this issue, the newly introduced NEP 2020 stresses learning skill-based courses while in schools and colleges. It won't transform the system overnight, however, if given a positive direction and implemented judiciously, it can do wonders to redress this grave issue.

The gravity of this problem can be acknowledged by the fact that number of applicants applying is more than a hundred times the number of advertised posts every time when notifications are issued by the recruiting agencies. It is challenging for the authorities to conduct the exams for various advertised posts.

To overcome this growing problem and suggest a lasting solution, every stakeholder including the authorities at the helm must come forward at the earliest to safeguard the future of our educated youth as it becomes challenging for them to tie the nuptial even in their 30s.

Late marriages are becoming a norm now due to this overgrowing issue of our youth. So, we shouldn't act as buffoons and jesters upon seeing them doing some peculiar and eccentric jobs rather we must encourage, inspire and uplift them. It will surely impact them in a positive, pragmatic and productive manner.

SRINAGAR — Omar Abdullah, Vice President of the Jammu and Kashmir National Conference, while being asked by the reporters on Tuesday to give his reaction regarding the budget presented by Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said that he hadn't had time to review it due to party commitments. However, he was quick to criticize the Centre over the "worst unemployment" crises facing the UT of Jammu and Kashmir.

Abdullah emphasized the severe challenges facing Jammu and Kashmir, particularly the escalating unemployment crisis, which he described as the worst in the country. "I hope to see provisions in the budget addressing the plight of unemployed youth in Jammu and Kashmir," he said.

He also highlighted the Valley's ongoing problems with water and electricity shortages, calling for these problems to be addressed in the Finance Minister's budget speech. Abdullah assured that his party's two Members of Parliament would raise these critical issues if these were overlooked.

Commenting on the Supreme Court's order concerning the Kanwar Yatra, Abdullah criticized the directive of Uttar Pradesh Police in Muzaffarnagar to shop owners to display their names outside shops during the Kanwar Yatra. He stated that such an order should never have existed in the first place.

Condemning the directive of displaying shopkeepers' names along the Yatra route, he argued it marginalizes Muslim shopkeepers in states like Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, and Uttarakhand.

Drawing a stark contrast, Abdullah pointed out the integral role of Muslims in supporting the Amarnath Yatra in Kashmir and added that Muslims carry Amarnath pilgrims on their shoulders to get a glimpse of the Shiva Lingam. He accused the BJP of sparking religious controversies and victimizing minorities, especially Muslims.

The Uttar Pradesh government on July 19 had made it mandatory for food and beverage shops along Kanwar Yatra routes to display the name and identity of the operator or owner of their establishments. Similar directives had been issued in other states including Madhya Pradesh and Uttarakhand.

However, the Supreme Court on Monday stayed the direction issued by authorities, saying in its order that they (shopkeepers/vendors) must not be forced to display the name/identity of the owners and also the employees, deployed in their respective establishments.

SRINAGAR — To address the longstanding issue of unemployment, the Jammu and Kashmir Government is going to initiate the recruitment process to fill more than 12,000 vacant positions across various government departments.

As per an official document available with the news agency KNO, the Jammu and Kashmir administration will fill 12,264 positions that have been vacant in various government departments for many years.

The document said that the government since 2019 has filled as many as 31,830 vacancies in various government departments through multiple recruitment drives. “These 31,830 selections have been made in a fair, transparent, and expeditious manner. Interviews have been dispensed for the posts up to the pay level 5,” it said.

Official sources said that the vacancies are to be filled in departments including Health, Jal Shakti, Social Welfare, Rural Development department and others.

“The government has already enlisted the number of vacancies in various departments. We have a large number of vacant posts in the health department. Multiple recruitment drives shall follow this year and all the vacant posts will be filled in a speedy manner,” they said.

Officials said the recruitment drive will prioritize transparency and efficiency, adhering to established guidelines and procedures. The selection process is expected to be conducted rigorously, ensuring merit-based appointments to maintain the integrity of the civil services.

“By filling these vacancies, the government aims to strengthen its workforce, streamline service delivery, and promote inclusive development across the region,” they said.

Pertinently, Jammu and Kashmir as per the Ministry of State for Labour and Employment has recorded a decrease in the unemployment rate for graduate persons of age 15 years.

As per the ministry, during 2021-22, the estimated Unemployment Rate (UR) in Jammu and Kashmir was 22.8% for graduate persons aged 15 years. During 2022-23, the estimated unemployment rate in Jammu and Kashmir was 18.3 for graduates aged 15 years.

It is worth mentioning that the Jammu and Kashmir Home Department has recently referred more than 4,000 vacancies of police constable posts to the Services Selection Board.

SRINAGAR — In Jammu and Kashmir, nearly eight lakh youth registered at the Directorate of Employment are unemployed including two lakh educated individuals.

The news agency KNO reported that at least 1,99,872 educated youth were unemployed till May 31, 2023.

According to the data revealed by the Public Information Officer (PIO) at the Directorate of Employment in a reply to the Right to Information (RTI) application, “The total number of unemployed educated registered at the departmental portal as on 31.05.2023 was 199872.”

On asking about the details of schemes in the erstwhile state of J&K for employment programs and also the details of schemes now in vogue post abrogation of Article 370, the PIO said that upto 2015-16, the department was implementing the J&K Self Employment Scheme (JKSES) for educated unemployed youth of J&K state.

“However, during the budget announcements of 2015-16, the scheme was subsumed with Seed Capital Scheme of Jammu and Kashmir Entrepreneurship Institute JKEDI,” it reads.

The PIO further informed that now, the department has submitted the guidelines under the self-employment schemes viz; Seed Capital Fund Scheme, Youth Start-up Loan for their implementation through Directorate Employment which otherwise was earlier implemented by JKEDI and also a proposal for revival of J&K Overseas Corporation. “These guidelines and proposals are under examination with the Administrative Department.”

On seeking the details of any survey conducted by the Directorate of Employment in the Union Territory of J&K to ascertain the fact of unemployment and the permanent solution to the unemployment issue, the PIO said, “The department has conducted unemployment survey in all districts of the UT during the months of March, April and May 2022 in coordination with the District Administration.”

“All the districts except Bandipora have been covered. The report reveals that there are 6,63,511 unemployed youth as on 31.05.2022 in the UT,” reads the reply.

It also states that out of these unemployed youth, about 10-15 percent are self-employed or have an agriculture-related business or have a small shop in their respective villages. The PIO said, “Therefore, the actual number of unemployed youth at the field level will be 5,639,84.”

It also said that the workforce in the UT out of the total population of 130 lakhs will be 80 lakhs. “Therefore, the unemployment rate will be 7.04 percent.”

“Further, during 2022-23, the Directorate of Employment through its District Employment and Counseling Centres has conducted employment and unemployment survey by taking into consideration one village in every tehsil as a First Stage Unit (FSU),” reads the RTI reply.

The PIO further said that on the basis of the survey conducted from 206 tehsils as per the census of 2011, the basis of the survey is that the unemployment rate is around 8.31 percent.

SRINAGAR — Jammu Kashmir Service Selection Board (JKSSB), which is frequently in the news for the wrong reasons, has come up with figures which are absolutely flawed with regard to applications it has received from the job aspirants and vacancies filled up.

JKSSB has also shown its reluctance to make the data about revenue generation to the public.

Under the Right to Information Act, the applicant MM Shuja had sought information from the recruiting board, asking it how much revenue it has generated from jobless youth in the shape of application fees and demand drafts in Jammu and Kashmir for the last four years.

The Board in its first reply said that after working out, the data will be provided to the information seeker and then later on the JKSSB claimed that the information about revenue generation can’t be divulged under section 8(e) of the Right to Information Act.

Telephonically, a JKSSB official admitted that there is no record of how much revenue it has generated from job aspirants. In other words, it can be safely said that the Board has not maintained any proper record.

From 2019 to 2022, the official data reveals that 26,22,285 (Twenty-six lakh, twenty-two thousand and two hundred eighty-five) job aspirants have applied for different posts advertised by JKSSB and they properly paid submission fees.

JKSSB received 26,22,285, applications from job aspirants while it advertised 26,687 (Twenty-six thousand six hundred and eighty-seven) posts from 2019 to 2022.

Ironically, JKSSB has claimed that it filled 2616 vacancies in 2019 though the number of posts advertised was below the selected number of candidates. How 2616 vacancies were filled up when there were only 2026 posts advertised is a riddle that only the Board can solve.

The same is the case for the years 2021 and 2022. Also, the vacancies filled up are more than the posts advertised.

The data also highlights the graph of unemployment in Jammu and Kashmir. From 2019 to 2022, out of over 26 lakh job aspirants, only over 16,000 people have secured government jobs.

As per the data, only over 3,000 posts have been forwarded by different departments to JKSSB for the last four years.

SRINAGAR — The Government of Jammu and Kashmir has been pining hope for different financial institutions to bring down the unemployment rate to its lowest. Employment generation is the major challenge the government is facing right now in Jammu and Kashmir.

Official sources told the news agency KNT that to address the issue of grave unemployment, the government is pinning hope on different banks operating in the erstwhile state. They said banks have miserably failed to saturate self-employment to curb the issue of unemployment in Jammu and Kashmir.

One of the officials said that both the banks and government departments have failed to educate people about the benefits of schemes meant for employment generation. “Awareness is very important but that has not been so as it should be,” he said.

Besides, when one goes through the official records, it becomes clear that banks operating in Jammu and Kashmir have also failed to improve lending in the Priority Sector, which has remained sub-optimal, much to the displeasure of the government.

Recently, Chief Secretary Dr. Arun Kumar Mehta in one of his addresses claimed that the government is committed to bringing down unemployment in Jammu and Kashmir to below 5% and for this, banks need to put a well-drilled mechanism for saturating self-employment.

He, however, applauded the efforts made by J&K Bank in providing coverage and credit to people under various employment generation schemes and urged other banks to follow suit.

We are living in a modern world where everything is easily available. Everyday discoveries come into existence and scientists and inventors produce useful things which make our hard work easier than they were. We are capable to do everything in less time like washing clothes in five minutes used to take us hours.

Modern technology has led to an easy and beautiful life. Its effect can be seen clearly in the present generation as they are living an easier life than their parents. They are also very much educated and mature at an early age. They seem to have intelligence compared to their parents. But it is also true that if anything has a bright side, it also possesses a dark side and it matters in our present generation.

Our modern environment has good effects as well as bad effects on our generation. That's why there is no doubt that our generation is suffering from depression, madness for fame and money, and concern for physical fitness and appearance. These are only because of maturity at an early age. There is no doubt that youth is depressed—fostering previous events in their mind and compacting in future thoughts.

Their madness for fame is such that they want to become famous at an early age. They don't want to be known by their father's name. They want their new identity, which makes their salient personality. It is right but an early age, it turns dangerous because of their vagueness and crudeness and due to this, they can be attracted to drugs. Their trance and imagination for luxury life result in failure in their careers.

Because everyone has fallen into their own greed, so today nothing is right and real just like the food is not pure. For better production, simple farmers use chemicals that give high production but no nutrients. Due to this, our generation has a deficiency of nutrients which gives them diseases like myopia, hypermetropia, hair fall, anemia, weak bones, etc. Low energy turns them lazy and that's why they don't take interest in the study, sports, tours, etc.

Similarly, they are very much worried about their appearance, since they are living in the modern world where new fashions and trends come into existence every day. This generation wants to follow these trends and in order to do so, they need money but not everyone can afford the same. It put them into another problem. They don't sustain living with the old ones as it makes them feel uncomfortable. They want to show off to their friends, relatives, neighbours so that their rank would be high.

The previous generation was not as bad as we think. They were also very happy in other ways. They might be suffering from many difficulties but those difficulties were beneficial for them. Though they know the reality of people clearly, these things matter to them. Our old generation was not as unlucky as we think in view of the modern world because they were free from these things. Their life was also easy in their view. Hard life didn't matter and our generation is suffering from many things which make them forget their luckiness.

How can they get out of these things? What should be done? First, depression and anxiety are bad results of feelings and emotions. These are the result of extraordinary pain. But to overcome these, it should be fixed in the minds of the present generation that the past has gone and the future is coming but the present is in their hands.

At the present, there are many opportunities and ways to correct the mistakes of the past as well as to make the future better and satisfied. They should remove the thoughts which make them feel sad. During these times, they should not be alone. They should stay where they can find happiness and enjoy themselves. If parents want to get their children out of this situation, they should ask them about their problems and reassure them that nothing is so wrong that can't be corrected.

Secondly, their intense feelings for fame need to be practical. It depends upon their condition and what type of fame they want. If they want to become famous in their career, put positive thoughts in their minds and encourage them but if they want to become famous with a bad attitude, action should be taken to desist them.

Similarly for money, these people should be told that money is not everything. If they have enough money for their needs, then they are happy and if they can make more money along with their happiness, that's fine. But it should not be necessarily acquired with trouble and killing happiness. If they are unemployed, tell them that in modern society, they can do their own business easily. To do so, they can get the initial investment by taking loans.

Thirdly, as far as health problems are concerned, they should be aware that apart from money and fame, health should be taken care of because money and fame can be owned by a person when he is healthy but health cannot be made by money or fame so they should eat healthily and breathe fresh air. Since today's food is not healthy, so they can get nutrition by taking nutritional pills according to their need.

SRINAGAR — Member of Parliament and former Congress President Rahul Gandhi has said people of Jammu and Kashmir wanted employment, better business and love but instead they got bulldozer from the ruling Bhartiya Janata Party.

In a tweet in Hindi, Gandhi said the land, which people of Jammu and Kashmir had been working on and toiling hard for many decades, is being snatched from them. He said peace and Kashmiriyat will be protected by unity, not by bulldozers and dividing the people.

“Jammu and Kashmir wanted employment, better business and love, but what did they get? Bulldozer of BJP! The land, which the people there irrigated with hard work for many decades, is being snatched from them. Peace and Kashmiriyat will be protected by uniting, not by dividing and dividing people,” he tweeted.

Notably, Jammu and Kashmir Government has launched an anti-encroachment drive to retrieve 'illegally occupied state' and Kahcharai land.

The move, however, has evoked strong criticism and resentment from local political parties, stating the eviction drive is selective and aimed to snatch land and shelter from the people of Jammu and Kashmir.