Primary schools to reopen in Kashmir; higher educational institutions stay shut over protest fears

Kashmir, Jammu and Kashmir: While the Centre might have decided to reopen primary schools in Kashmir from Monday, operating institutions of higher education remains the biggest worry for the authorities as apprehensions of student protests are rife owing to the past record. Even parents are worried about sending their wards to schools under the present circumstances.Chief Secretary of Jammu & Kashmir (J&K) B V R Subrahmanyam had announced that schools would reopen on Monday in an area-wise manner in Kashmir while adding that the schools are being reopened so that the education of the children doesn’t suffer.Although the government claims that Kashmir is limping back to normalcy, the worry surrounding student protests have become a cause of concern for the authorities. There are several educational institutions where pro-separatist protests have become routine and have turned into incidents of public disorder often. At times, the security forces had to enter the higher-secondary schools and colleges to contain the protests.In 2017 and 2018, it was seen that students were leading protests in parts of Kashmir, forcing the government to close down schools and colleges for weeks.Kashmir University yet to reopenKashmir University which observed summer vacations till August 18 has extended it to August 23 now.“It is a [cause of] big worry for the government. How long will state administration close down higher educational institutions! Since 2017, we have witnessed how students took part in protests and even participated in stone-pelting,” a senior government official said.He, however, said a process has begun categorisation of the educational institutions in the Valley. “The educational institutions will be declared as sensitive, hypersensitive or non-sensitive. It has also been decided that no outsider should be allowed to enter the colleges and higher-secondary schools once they reopen. Police in civil clothes may also be deployed in the varsities,” he added.Principal Secretary of J&K Rohit Kansal said necessary preparations were being made for the reopening of schools and is limited to primary schools now. However, he didn’t comment on when the high schools, higher secondary schools, and colleges would reopen.Divisional Commissioner of Kashmir Baseer Ahmad Khan told 101Reporters that the district development commissioners have held meetings with officers of the school education department for identification of schools to be reopened in the initial phase.The announcement about reopening of primary schools means that the government wants children up to 5th standard to go to schools.Mohammad Hanif, whose eight-year-old daughter studies in a school in Srinagar, said the government wants to reopen schools to show signs of normalcy. “Who will allow kids to go to school under the present circumstances? We are worried if violent protests take place, who will bring our children home when we can’t even communicate with the school authorities,” Hanif argued.“The schools have their own applications where parents get texts about picking and dropping points of students. How can we know all that when mobile phones are not working,” he asked.Mohammad Sharif, another parent, said although they want their children to go to school, the government has to create a suitable environment. “Who will guarantee the safety and security of our children? There have been violent protests in several educational institutions in the past. How will we know whether our children have reached to their school safely when mobile phones are not working,” Sharif questioned.Mental health affectedThe prevailing situation has also traumatised students and it is making it difficult for them to concentrate on studies.Tahir Ahmad, a student of class 12 in Srinagar, asked when the surroundings are gripped in fear how can students concentrate on studies. “People are caged to their homes. Communication channels are shut but the government wants to reopen schools,” he added.Irshad Ahmad, who is pursuing graduation in one of the local colleges, has not moved out of his home since August 4, when restrictions were imposed in the Valley.He has been confined inside the four walls, which has caused a lot of distress to him.The ongoing circumstances have started weakening Irshad’s memory who feels frustrated staying inside four walls for the whole day. “He seems so frustrated that he does not know the days of the week now. He does not know whether it is Thursday or Sunday,” his father Abdul Rahim, a resident of Zakura, told 101Reporters.Last week, Irshad had to consult a psychiatrist, who after examining him had prescribed some medicines. “The doctor told us that the ongoing crisis has taken a heavy toll on the mental health and the majority of people are facing one or the other mental problems owing to the prevailing situation,” Rahim shared.Doctors, after examining the patients, have diagnosed that people used to vent their emotions on social networking sites but the gag has frustrated them and added to their mental agony.

Lockdown in Kashmir costing chefs a year’s worth pay

Kashmir, Jammu Kashmir: “Due to [the] prevailing situation in Kashmir, the invitation for [the] marriage ceremony of my nephews Jan Mohammad Sofi and Wasim Ahmad Sofi, which was scheduled on August 24 and 25 is cancelled. However, [the] Nikkah ceremony will be held with simplicity. Inconvenience to guests is regretted,” read a notice published in a local daily by Habibullah Sofi of Alamdar Colony, Nowpora.Another one by Mohammad Yousuf Bazaz, a resident of Chinar Gulab Bagh in Srinagar, read, “Due to [the] prevailing situation in Kashmir, the invitation for [the] marriage ceremony of my sons which was scheduled on August 20, 21, and 22 is cancelled. However, [the] Nikkah ceremony will be held with simplicity.”Local dailies in Kashmir are splashed with notices of cancelled weddings informing guests not to come for feasts as the ceremonies would be held in an austere manner. Weddings in the Kashmir valley are an elaborate affair with extravagant feasts prepared for days. Chefs, who are locally known as Wazas, have a limited season of three months between July and September when maximum weddings take place. However, this year, scores of weddings have either been postponed or the Nikkah ceremonies are being held without the usual frills associated with such ceremonies. Local dailies in Kashmir are splashed with notices of cancelled weddings informing guests not to come for feasts as the ceremonies would be held in an austere manner. Weddings in the Kashmir valley are an elaborate affair with extravagant feasts prepared for days. Chefs, who are locally known as Wazas, have a limited season of three months between July and September when maximum weddings take place. However, this year, scores of weddings have either been postponed or the Nikkah ceremonies are being held without the usual frills associated with such ceremonies. The Valley is under lockdown since the abrogation of Article 370 and 35A by the Centre on August 5 and the curfew has created numerous problems for the people in the industry. The change in plans has caused a series of cancellations of orders for chefs, butchers and sweet-meat makers. Mohammad Subhan, 55, a chef from Srinagar, had received orders for cooking Wazwan (a multi-course meal cooked on special occasions in Kashmir) for nine scheduled weddings in August. However, the orders were cancelled in view of the prevailing situation in Kashmir.He would have charged about Rs 40,000-60,000 for each order that he had received. He had hired 15 people to help him with Wazwan, and had even given an advance for the month of August and September to the workers. While the orders stand cancelled, Subhan is in distress these days owing to the heavy losses he had to sustain. Another chef Ghulam Rasool said they were fully booked till September, but people are postponing weddings or holding them in an austere manner without Wazwan. He said that they generate a lot of revenue during the wedding season, however, the current situation has badly hit the business.Bashir Ahmad, a businessman who deals with garments and cosmetics, said over 80% of his business takes place between July to September. He added that his shops have been completely shut for the last two weeks. “People are mentally disturbed, weddings are being cancelled, the traders are not importing goods for ceremonies owing to the lockdown,” he stated. Mohammad Abdullah, whose only son was scheduled to get married next week, said nobody would cook Wazwan for weddings in Kashmir under the present circumstances. A businessman by profession, Abdullah had decided to prepare six quintals of meat for his son’s weddings, but the plan was cancelled as there were increasing concerns about the safety of guests amid the strict restrictions. Abdullah, a resident of Soura in Srinagar, is worried about reaching the bride’s home at Bemina, which is less than 10 kilometres away. Only four people will accompany the groom for the wedding party, he said. He added that they are worried that incidents of stone-pelting or checks by the security forces would affect the procession and permission from the authorities before heading towards the bride’s home might be required.Not just weddings, even the recently concluded Eid al-Adha was celebrated with simplicity. Unlike the previous years, there was very less demand for animals and only a few bakeries or sweet-meat shops were open.On average, the dealers used to import over four lakh animals on Eid. However, according to government sources, only 2.5 lakh animals were imported to the Valley this year.

Medicinal plants in Kashmir on verge of extinction

Tangmarg, Jammu & Kashmir: From May to August every year, Abdul Rahim, a resident of Tangmarg in Jammu & Kashmir (J&K), walks for hours to reach Afarwat on the upper reaches of picturesque Gulmarg. The hilly terrains are dotted with Tripater plants—also known as Trillium. Rahim, who goes there to extract the plants, takes 20 minutes. The plant is then sold to smugglers who sell it to international markets.Rahim manages to get Rs 2,500 for each kilogram of Trillium. With his son, he extracts almost half a kilogramme every day for four months. The Himalayas is among the 36 biodiversity hotspots in the world and is home to more than 60% of the world's flora and fauna. He, along with scores of people, extract medicinal plants without knowing their importance. For many like Rahim, extracting illegal medicinal plant has emerged as a major source of income. Locals involvedKashmir has a rich depository of medicinal plants, which are used in aromatherapy, cosmetics and medical treatments. There are 571 different kinds of medicinal plants available in the state, out of which some are high-end plants having high commercial value. The demand of these plants from European countries, China, Japan and other nations has turned Kashmir into a hotspot for smugglers.Several medicinal and aromatic plant species are on the verge of extinction in the state. Trillium, which was earlier a lesser-known medicinal plant in trade, has gained popularity in commercial utilisation these days. It is one of the most sought after medicinal species in the western Himalayan region.The underground part of the plant—rhizome—is a key material of trade containing Trillarin which on hydrolysis yields diosgenin and used in the preparation of steroidal and sex hormones.In Tangmarg, which is situated in Baramulla district, it is not only the men but the women too walk miles through mountainous terrains to extract the plants.A woman in her late thirties, on the condition of anonymity, said she earns Rs 400 to 600 on a daily basis. She extracts plants at Khilanmarg in the upper reaches of Gulmarg, but fears being caught by the forest guards. “We only sell when we know the smugglers otherwise there are chances we may get caught,” she added.The smugglers send local men and women to the forest for extraction. The forest guards deployed allow the locals to go in forests to gather various things like forest wood and dried leaves.  A resident of Tangmarg, who didn’t wish to be named, shared how medicinal plants reach to the international markets, “Around 10 years ago, the smugglers, with the help of locals, started extracting Trillium in Uttarakhand and Himachal Pradesh. After the plant started vanishing there, they shifted their focus to Kashmir four years ago,” he said while adding that several medicinal plants are on the verge of extinction in the Valley.“The locals get Rs 2,500 to 3,000 per kilogramme of Trillium, which is then supplied to Chandigarh, Nepal, China and also European countries. It has a value of Rs 70,000 per kilogramme there,” he informed while adding that few foreigners, who come as tourists, carry medicinal plants in their bags.These medicinal plants are being exported in trucks laden with fruits to Chandigarh from where it is being supplied to various parts, he added.Artemisia (Wormwood), which is locally known as Tethwan, is another medicinal plant which has a huge international value. These are found in Gulmarg, Sonamarg, Gananpeer and several parts of Budgam and Kupwara in Kashmir and is widely smuggled. Tethwan is an important part of Unani and Ayurvedic systems of medicine.Other medicinal plants smuggled from Kashmir include Kutki, the dried rhizome with the root of Picrorhiza kurrooa, and is widely used in Ayurvedic medicine.Smuggling rampant amid banEarlier in 2005, the J&K government had imposed a ban on the extraction of medicinal plants, fearing extinction of some species. However, in 2013, the J&K Government lifted the ban on the extraction of several medicinal plants and other minor forest produce from the forest areas of the state. However, the smugglers have also been extracting the banned medicinal plants.Professor Irshad Nawchoo of the Kashmir University, who has done extensive research on medicinal plants, stressed the preservation of medicinal plants. There are several medicinal plants which are at the verge of extinction due to smuggling or unplanned constructions, he said.Akhtar H Malik, a researcher at the Kashmir University, said the forest department in collaboration with the state medical board would be creating nurseries of medicinal plants so that the “natural habitat is preserved”.The government would also provide training to forest dwellers to create nurseries, he said while adding that the government needs to involve the locals so that the natural habitat is not disturbed and smuggling is stopped.O P Sharma, Director of the State Forest Research Institute, said while the number of medicinal plants is decreasing in J&K, smuggling is not the main reason behind it. He stated that the construction of roads, pollution, and stress on habitat as the reasons behind the decline.K Vijay Kumar—Forest and Ecology & Environment Advisor to the Governor—said the government was taking several measures for the preservation of medicinal plants. He informed that the government is going to frame a state medicinal plant policy to make medicinal plants sustainable.Steps for the regeneration of rare plant species have also been taken, he said while adding that additional steps are being taken to stop the smuggling of forest produce.Recently at a workshop in Srinagar, K Skandan—Agriculture and Horticulture Advisor to Governor—said the dearth of knowledge on the identity and agro-technology of the plants was adding hurdles in medicinal plant cultivation. He emphasised on the need to make the knowledge available to everyone.