It’s not just the economy, the second important sector that has been suffering since long is the Education. The State government had ordered closure of all educational institutions in Jammu and Kashmir on the eve of August 05 last year. After abolishing the former State’s special position, the authorities ordered opening of schools but students stayed away.
It was in March this year that students started to turn up in schools, colleges and universities but it was a very short-lived phenomenon. Schools reopened on February 24 after remaining shut for nearly eight months but were shut down again after the Centre announced a country-wide lockdown in March to fight the COVID-19 pandemic.
Around one million students are enrolled in government and private schools in Kashmir, with an equal number in the Jammu region. The government and private schools started online classes for students but the restrictions on 4G Internet in Kashmir have not helped the cause.
The parents of private students have also complained that the schools have asked them to clear the fees of their wards at a time when the economic activity due to lockdown has come to a halt. The question of fee-payments is likely to be a major issue when schools reopen in the Kashmir valley.
Apart from online classes, the absence of high-speed mobile internet marred the dissemination of information, especially video content, related to COVID-19. Medics have repeatedly been asking the authorities for the restoration of 4G Internet in Kashmir.
Besides health services, people from other sectors have complained of inability to work due to the suspension of 4G internet in Kashmir.
Given the sad state of affairs, it is ironical to witness that the phase-wise lockdown relaxations announced by the Centre hardly trickled down to J&K. Instead, the administration has been pressing for restrictions as the cases of Coronavirus continue to surge in the Valley.
In the special scenario of the Valley, the administration needs to think out-of-the-box and devise a ‘sustainable unlock strategy’ instead of a ‘lockdown strategy’ and only such a measure would help mitigate the sufferings of Kashmiris.
Also Read: Amid pandemic, J&K to witness opening of all government offices from today
**Dil-Paziir (Urdu; meaning ‘heart-pleasing’) is a special edition news series brought to you by Digpu, starting from Kashmir. Our local journalists have successfully shared many inspirational stories from the valley – from the invention of E-Charkha, automatic ventilator in Kashmir, stories of brotherhood through to the first-ever cricket tourney for Blind sportsmen, all the stories make us awe-struck.
