Demonetization: A Pill Gone Wrong

31st December 2016 is coming and earlier around this date we all used to be so happy thinking about the coming New Year. But this year's significance of this date has definitely shadowed the happiness of many. This year 31st December is also a deadline for depositing the scrapped currency notes of Rs. 500 and Rs.1000 into bank accounts. All of it started on 8th November 2016, when the Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, continuing with his promises to fight corruption, abruptly scrapped the currency notes of Rs 500 and Rs.1000 denomination with some conditions and deadlines announced along with it. But by the side of this announcement came replacement of these notes with new Rs.500 note and Rs. 2000 note. The thrust was to go for cashless transactions from the very next day after withdrawal of 86% of the country's currency. The main argument behind imposing this decision was to flush out black money, corruption, counterfeit notes and terrorism funding in India. 

Meanwhile like the rest of the country, within minutes Jammu too had the impact of this announcement. People started running out of their houses to spend these scrapped notes in one way or another. A sense of urgency to get rid of these notes was witnessed in many Jammuites. It was the quantity of notes which made every family in Jammu decide where they should spend it.  Some people rushed to stand in lines at petrol pumps while others went to the nearest grocery store. Most important ‘appeared-segment’ that night were people who went rushing towards jewelry shops of Jammu. Incidentally, some of those panicked customers are at present finding themselves in CCTV recordings of the jewelry shops. These recordings are now evidence against them. On the night of 8th November, Jammu markets immediately swelled as there were countless confused buyers out on roads.  Many shops in Jammu that night even remained open till 1 a.m. Things didn’t end soon and many after effects of this announcement were visible in Jammu. One of the events which came into public domain was when some vehicle was found carrying scrapped notes in Jammu city. Another thing that has amused Jammuites is how nothing has happened in Kashmir after this big announcement. People in Kashmir protest for any small incident like ration shortage but they didn’t protest over currency note shortage. 

Demonetization drive was just a beginning, as since then we are seeing some traits of undeclared-financial emergency across India. A political turbulence has come in the country as the whole opposition is on a tightrope with this policy implementation. They since then have been accusing PM Modi’s idea of a cashless economy unrealistic. But this accusation looks factual in a country where several crores of people in rural India don’t have any bank account even till today. We cannot overlook the role of the internet also as far as implementation of a cashless economy is concerned.  Just think of rural India where we have negligible internet presence. On the other hand, if in J&K any small anti- social incident happens then the first step taken by the administration is to shut internet services. How can with such prevalent internet services India can go for a cashless economy? Several problems were also aggravated by everyday changing deadlines and flip flops of the central government. Post demonetization it appears that the working of banks and ATM’s have totally altered. One aspect of bank operations which impacted the policy of demonetization is ‘Jan-Dhan accounts’. These accounts were opened by all banks with an objective set by the government to help poor people in the country. Strangely, time changed and these accounts came to the rescue of the rich by helping them to launder their cash into such accounts. One more case is of Axis Bank where its employee’s have been found involved in trading with old scrapped notes against new notes. While on the other hand, ATM’s are no more 24x7 working machines as ATM’s dry up within a few hours signifying the intensity of the problem. Moreover, ATM’s are now becoming death points as in the last month we saw many deaths of people while standing in ATM lines across the country. It is one of the heartbreaking moments as people are getting killed for their own money. It appears that all such situations have emerged all because of non-availability of cash in the country.

Demonetization is no doubt a very reforming and politically bold step for the country taken by PM Modi. But I believe demonetization for now has not been handled properly and this pill to cure the country has gone wrong. This whole drive has backfired and tarnished the image of the Prime Minister. The present Prime Minister was considered a business-friendly politician because of his work and growth achieved in Gujarat. But here it's contrary as demonetization has clearly affected the businessmen of this country. Let’s not forget its impact on farmers who are part of 98% people who buy and sell mostly on cash in India. Either it is a disaster or a miscalculation, by the group of people in government who conceived this demonetization scheme. In addition to it, the fight against corruption touched a new low, as a situation in the country has emerged whereby people are buying new notes against old notes by paying heavy commission. Hence, it has given rise to new corrupt practices which hinders the basic idea behind demonetization. Another fact that demonetization will impact the terrorism funding too got affected after a Kashmiri militant, who was killed in encounter, was found carrying new Rs. 2000 note within few days after demonetization drive started. The possibility of people getting immediate relief is not near but things have started improving very slowly after 6 weeks. Inspite of sufferings of small scale industries, we should still support the government argument that demonetization drive will bring good days for Indian economy. Let’s support this reform but present pain shouldn’t be ignored against future promises.

Summer Heat In Kashmir's Winter

Finally, it's winter in Kashmir. But still we are witnessing some heated actions which started in summer of 2016. The social environment this year in Kashmir was quite contrasting as emotions ran higher and above all. Many shades of decade old events were witnessed. Though uncertainty prevails in Kashmir for decades now but this summer everything seemed so rigid. So who do we blame this year? Surely, for some it’s the government and for others it’s the public who have again lent their support to this year’s unrest. Now with the onset of winter, various analogies are being drawn in the last few days to show that unrest has ended and is settled. But ask people living in narrow lanes of Srinagar and you will catch the same summer heat in Kashmir’s winter.  For these people unrest is unbroken. Hurriyat has started issuing some relaxation but that is for the convenience of local people. An uneasy calm still prevails and bandh has crossed the fourth month which is the longest ever in Kashmir. Since July this year, Kashmir has been witnessing various deaths along with uncountable injuries.

After having written a few weeks back about the prevailing matter I believe that issue is still frozen and no melting point seems near. Moreover, there have been many odd instances in the past few weeks which made me write again over this problem. When was the last time we heard of schools, buildings, cars and auto rickshaws being burnt in Kashmir? I am sure it takes us all decades back into our memories. Also let me remind you that this year we witnessed women pelting stones in some areas of Kashmir. The role of Kashmiri women changed drastically. This change signifies a lot if it is observed from a social angle along with its social repercussions in near future. In addition to all this, have you ever heard of efforts being taken on a large scale to create a sense of cohesiveness between Kashmiri militants and Sikh militants of Punjab? If not, then we had that too in Kashmir this summer. This all appeared when Zakir Rashid Bhat, successor of Burhan Wani, alleged that the government was planning to take action in Kashmir valley in an operation similar to ‘Operation Blue Star’ in Punjab. It didn’t end here; Zakir Rashid Bhat also claimed that his organization is planning to raise an exclusive group for Sikhs in their outfit. It’s so terrifying to think of the motives of these anti- national elements. The Sikhs in India have already suffered a lot because of militancy in Punjab and I shall never-ever want my community to go through that phase again. 

The incidents this summer signified how minds of Kashmiri people are burning with anger, when we saw petrol bombs being hurled at J&K Education Minister, Nayeem Akhtar’s house. Many shops and vehicles too were targeted this year in this newly adopted strategy. Situation in Kashmir this year is very threatening as with every passing day new kinds of attacks have taken place. Earlier, bandh was considered a conventional mode of showing anger but rifle snatching events, one after another, this year showed traits of guerilla warfare. All of a new stratum appears to have risen this year in the society of Kashmir. This all is being supported by people who want things to be so much interlinked socially and religiously that it doesn’t get easy to unwind this whole mess later. Besides this, unrest of 2016 witnessed the eruption of a new colour flag in some areas of Kashmir. Did you guess it? I know you must be still thinking of green. No, this time we had red colour flags of China which were waved and cuddled by the angry young boys on Kashmir roads.

The inference to high intensity of this year’s unrest can be drawn from another angle. A three ban was imposed on publication of newspapers in Kashmir to stop certain things from coming into public domain. As our country is seeing tremendous campaigns to convert India into ‘Digital India’ yet Kashmir saw a ban of 133 days on post paid mobile net services.  This year’s overall situation made present Chief Minister Mehbooba Mufti to plead before the central government as well as separatists in Kashmir to give peace a chance. The opinion of the Chief Minister seems to have fallen on deaf ears as both centre and separatist want their supremacy to exist. This all has proved that the agenda of development of Prime Minister, Narendra Modi has failed to impress Kashmiri people. ‘Strategy of sentiment’ won over the ‘agenda of development’ and this fact cannot be ignored as the level of response to bandh is enormous. The Modi government is more burdened because of this unrest as BJP is in an alliance in J&K with PDP. Once again, it appears Pakistan has been successful in exploiting the Kashmiri youth during unrest. On the other hand, this time the central government left nothing to the imagination as all those involved were picked up in night raids across Kashmir. Nevertheless, the truth is that this picking up won’t give any result as the youth in Kashmir has taken it up as their job to maintain unrest every year. At this moment as winter has set in, unrest as well as militant violence is bound to decline on a similar old pattern. The state and centre government should involve all stakeholders and bring some permanent solution to this problem. All that is crucial for the Kashmir issue is ‘good-intent’ of all stakeholders as a replacement for ‘track-I’ & ‘track II’ diplomacy or will come another summer after a bitter winter.

In The Name Of School Olympics

Chain Singh, a 27 years old young man, from Chanser, a small village in Doda district of Jammu and Kashmir participated in Rio Olympics 2016. It took J&K more than 6 decades to see someone play in the Olympics. Don’t start presuming about the contribution of any sports association from J&K or J&K Sports Council or any government department to Chain Singh’s this achievement. He is serving in the Indian Army and credit for this achievement goes to the Indian Army only. This fact may refresh memories of many as by now they must have forgotten him. Many in our state were in a jovial mood when the Rio Olympics were going on but now as games are over so is our enthusiasm. ‘Sports’ in J&K for many is an alien word. There must be hardly any instance where you could have noticed parents promoting their children to play sports in our state. For every parent in J&K priority is, education of their children and all of them want their children to be an engineer, doctor or some other professional degree holder. None of them ever desire their children to be a gold, silver or bronze medalist. But yes, they don’t mind these shiny metals at home but not at cost of studies. They cannot be blamed purely for it as there is no skilled sports atmosphere in the state. Parents at all times see children of their relatives as well as neighbors being pushed in studies but not in sports. Over the past many years this approach of our state has made us stand far behind states like Punjab and Haryana.

Few days back sports fever was reignited by District Administration Jammu as we saw an inter-school sports event held under the name of ‘School Olympics’. It was a 9 daylong event  in which events of Kabaddi, Wrestling, Football, Hockey, Volleyball Basketball, Badminton, Table Tennis, Athletics and Marathon were held. It is said that more than 100 schools and 3500 students from government as well as private schools took part in it. The beauty of this event was that it was the first of its kind event which was organized in our state. Basically, it was an inter school sports event but was held in a very professional manner and appeared as a step towards inculcating sports culture in children of Jammu. I too got a chance to witness this extraordinary event. The intensity of the event can be judged with the fact that around one hundred medals were distributed at the closing ceremony of ‘School Olympics’. This event had some unhappy moments also as some officials and participants complained about the refreshments served. I was informed by technical staff on duty there that as far refreshments were concerned, they were initially promised something better. However, I feel this alteration can be understood as the Jammu administration has taken help of many sponsors to conduct this event. In addition to it, some matters pertaining to non availability of toilet facilities at venues was also discussed in the sports circle of Jammu. However, such things can be overlooked but should not be ignored and be worked over for the future.

There must be many people who by now must be trying to add this event in historical pages of J&K. No doubt it deserves a place in history but it has left some unanswered questions too. Though such an initiative held in the name of ‘School Olympics’ was aimed at providing an opportunity to children in the field of sports. But I feel that no impact can be made unless there is infrastructure for the players in state to practice after such events. The winner will become a winner just from such a single event and he or she cannot be a winner in life. The first requirement is to work over the infrastructure. All those children who excelled at this event cannot be nurtured further in such a deficient atmosphere. If we look into the present state of affairs then we can see that we don't have many stadiums in Jammu and not even have a large number of multipurpose indoor sports halls. Till today we have got many packages for the development of sports infrastructure in  J&K  but efforts were made to save this money in banks then spending it on the required infrastructure. We don't have any kind of sports calendar for organizing different sports events in the state.  Events like ‘School Olympics’ definitely give some mental happiness and various ‘personal-liasion’ building sessions also. On the other hand, we need honesty as the final destination for sportsmen in J&K is definitely not such events as they need many bigger landmarks which lie far off in their thoughts.

Faulty Signals From Kashmir

The summer of 2016 again has seen a crisis which kept Kashmir under curfew for more than 2 months and caused loss of several precious lives. There are many people, by now, in J&K who since their childhood or youth days have been hearing about the Kashmir crisis. But something contrary is continuously happening between the 'people of J&K' and the 'issue of Kashmir'. On one hand the 'people of J&K' are getting older with every passing day while on the other hand the 'issue of Kashmir' is getting younger day by day. This suggestion that the Kashmir issue is getting young is that the crisis keeps coming again and again especially in the Kashmir region of J&K after every few years. All those who have grown old while witnessing this Kashmir crisis will agree that the situation seems to stand there only where it started from. This context may not be wrong as the Kashmir issue is still young because Kashmiri people are giving their energy, in one form or another, to keep it in continuity. When we go through the pages of history over the Kashmir crisis then we see many political personalities who tried their best to settle the Kashmir issue but failed to do so. Let’s not just peep into history as we have a future ahead which needs to be saved.

The era of Nehru-Sheikh, Indira-Bhutto and Vajpayee - Nawaz is over. Surprisingly these names define a very large portion of J&K history, especially relating to the Kashmir crisis. Saddest part of this whole history is that nothing came out which could have ended the darkness to add a new bright morning to this issue of Kashmir crisis. But this time the Modi led central government at present has the best opportunity to educate the militants and their think-tanks that the Indian portion of Kashmir is a closed chapter. Moreover the Modi led govt came to power with the promises of keeping the country safe and united during their campaign in 2014 general elections. Interestingly, the PoK matter has been raised by the present centre govt. in order to put Pakistan on back foot. It is significant to mention here that at present PoK is a burning political issue in India after the surgical strikes by the Indian Army in PoK. Presently, this political move has been liked by many, but only time will tell whether this move helps in moving Kashmir out of crisis or it too ends as a political 'pulse raising method'. Now when such an approach has been raised then the Indian government should also start efforts to vacate the PoK as the whole of PoK is a grabbed land. Moreover, till today India had been slow in its approach towards PoK and now onwards it should gain momentum. Many chapters were witness to Kashmir dispute and one such was Shimla Accord but even after this accord Pakistan has never ever changed its approach towards India and always instigated unrest in J&K.

Importantly, the present government at centre has tremendous numbers in Parliament and can take a decisive stance over the Kashmir issue. This fact has been supported by CM Mehbooba Mufti who has recently declared that if the Modi govt won’t solve the issue of J&K then it won’t ever get solved in future. The word of the present CM holds a lot of significance as she has witnessed a similar situation in 2010 too. In a way she must be going through a small déjà-vu. However now her political role has reversed and all she has to do is work positively and not just blame opponents as she earlier had done. Interestingly, the BJP is an alliance partner in the J & K govt and should now undo this whole controversy around the state of J&K. It feels as if the time has come for the BJP to complete the work started by Shama Prasad Mukherjee. This will be their tribute to him but they have to tread through the difficult political structure of the country to reach this milestone. If they take certain more steps either with the help of 'word power' or with the 'power of strong government' then definitely the ever longing demand of bringing peace to J&K could be achieved.

This unrest of 2016 has reminded us of 2010 as similar situations erupted then also. We need to see that, irrespective of any political party the emotions of Kashmiri people are intact and firm. What we saw in the past more than two months has not built overnight and reflects much more which was witnessed. They seem to carry all this in their minds for the last many decades. This time people in Kashmir were so upset that they wanted this unrest to end only when a permanent solution came to the Kashmir problem. For many this vicious cycle of unrest coming after every few years is more harming then a continuous bandh of several months. This hatred with India and the passion for Kashmir issue is seen to be passed socially to all people irrespective of their age and generation. All that is required is to settle their minds which are ignited with passion which make them do so much. It has been witnessed that unrest of 2016 had its impact in Muslim dominated districts of Jammu region also. We cannot deny that their sympathizers have penetrated in such areas too which made government agencies implement curfews also in some areas and we saw some youth detained under PSA. The signals of unrest are not new but repetition of such signals from Kashmir has started fragmenting the whole state of J&K on social as well religious basis and we need to check that it doesn’t tear the fabric of oneness in years to come.

Crumbling Traffic Signals

Traffic signals are believed to be modern tools which help to regulate & streamline traffic in cities. Over the past some years Jammu has seen a tremendous rise in the number of vehicles. The resultant of this rising number of vehicles was traffic jams, chaos on roads & even accidents. The problem of rising traffic seems alarming as earlier only ten thousand vehicles used to get registered at Jammu Regional Transport Office (RTO) every year but now number is said to be thirty thousand every year. Though Jammu Regional Transport Office (RTO) has shown tremendous rise in revenue but roads are not ready to tackle such a big number of vehicles. Hence a policy was conceived in 2012 where it was decided to install traffic signals on Jammu roads to ensure smooth flow of traffic on roads. This policy was drafted in order to look after the future needs of the Jammu city because of rising traffic. But since the idea of putting traffic signals in Jammu was launched with big fanfare the celebrations did not last long. Within four years only the whole idea seems to have shattered as traffic signals at many locations in Jammu lie down in non functional conditions.

Initially these signals were believed to become savior to people of Jammu who go out to drive & ride on their vehicles every day. But after passage of time it is giving an impression to be a futile attempt as traffic chaos still prevails in the city as in some of the areas traffic signals are non-functional now. The project to install traffic signals was done to cover areas where traffic chaos was becoming a norm. But surprisingly the areas which needed these signals most urgently are in the same situation as were before their installation. The reason for it is that in some areas, especially old city, rather than solving the problem of traffic jams these signals aggravated the problem. This all appears quite astonishing as to why such a situation was not prejudged in city areas before commissioning this project. The traffic density is so high in the old city that we cannot even slow down the movement of vehicles for a while as it results in big traffic jams choking the whole city. Hence as this situation started arising every day in the old city because of these newly installed traffic signals it was decided to stop operating these signals in those areas. This all was done so soon that we cannot imagine why these signals were installed then at such points. The responsibility should have been fixed for the failure of such a thing at such a short period resulting in loss of taxpayers’ money. Another reason believed for stopping these signals in the old city was the hindrance to VIP movement in the old city. In effect these traffic signals are now acting as mere flashers at these sites. Now after stopping of these traffic signals at certain point’s pedestrians and motorists have started to suffer immensely. Most of the time warfare-like conditions prevail at such intersections where motorists from all directions try to cross each other resulting in traffic jams.

There is another side to this story of non functional traffic signals which are crumbling with every passing day. As we know that some of the locations in Jammu have been declared to be ‘traffic signal free zone’ yet there are some locations which have traffic signals but appear to be ‘traffic signal free zone’. Many areas of the city where traffic signals are installed are suddenly on several days found to be defunct during the day. Such situations show that the purpose for which these traffic lights have been installed by the authorities is not fulfilled till today. These areas are suffering purely because of technical faults which are due to power supply fluctuations, puncturing of cables and many other defects. This situation has failed to draw the attention of the authorities adding to the woes of the people in Jammu. The major reason for non attention to this prevailing problem is said to be blame game which happens between police & municipality. Immediate steps should always be taken to repair these non-functional traffic signals but instead inter departmental fights are the reason because of which people suffer & face chaos on roads. At times these signals remain non functional for many weeks in prominent areas. The situation worsens when these traffic signals lie defunct in name of various development works on the roads.

Interesting change nowadays is seen at some intersections as there is redeployment of traffic policemen at these points. However, it is pertinent to mention here that these deployed traffic personnel are now not able to handle heavy rush of vehicles during peak hours. The traffic goes out of order whenever there is a minor stoppage in passing traffic at busy intersections. It is during peak hours we get to analyze how much the traffic gets affected by these out-of-order traffic lights. Authorities should admit that there are faults, from day one, in overall implementation of these traffic signals but such admission will be of no use as loss is done. This slowly deteriorating condition of traffic lights has reminded some residents of Jammu about the era of the 70's. It was during this era when for the first time traffic lights were installed in Jammu but became complete failures. Though we are living in present society, we cannot forget the past, which is likely to repeat if no immediate steps are taken to keep these lights blinking.

Unrest Favours Hurriyat, Not Kashmir

The Kashmiris who had their shelters at Jammu and elsewhere in the country have moved out of the Valley because of the present unrest. The colonies like Bathindi, Sunjwan, Sidhra, Gujjar Nagar and other outskirt areas are flooded with Kashmiris these days unlike previous years when they used to come in November with the move of Secretariat. Kashmir is witnessing turmoil over the death of militant area commander Burhan Wani. This unrest has created new political and social alterations in the whole State of Jammu and Kashmir out of a well planned conspiracy under the guidance of militants' mentors from across the border and thereupon the support of Hurriyat. There had been killings of militant commanders earlier also but such large scale protests and pro Pak slogans were hardly seen.

The paid protesters and employed stone pelters in this unrest continue gaining momentum because of the government's policy of going soft towards the misguided youths and utmost restraints exercised by the security forces. This unrest has not only stalled all developmental works, affected the education of children, caused great loss to the business community and snatched the loaves of the daily wagers, but has also created miseries for the common masses. It raises questions as to whom Hurriyat represents as their voice is dying down because the common masses whom they project as their force negate their dictat. They in fact, have rejected the appeal of Hurriyat and militants to contribute to the so called 'Azadi movement'.

Stoning Internet

Welcome back to the 21st century. This welcome address is not incorrect for all those who missed the internet during past weeks in Jammu. For some people it was as if they were back in the Stone Age. Interestingly, this revisit to Stone Age was with the help of stone throwing which started in Kashmir. This all started after the killing of a militant in Srinagar. He was a militant of the contemporary era and utilized the services of the internet to spread his cause on social media. He in a way fought mind battles with the help of the internet. His death led to stone pelting all over Kashmir and these stones in a way hit the internet which resulted in ban on mobile internet services in J&K. Life came to a standstill in J&K mostly for all as people these days are very dependent on the internet. However, the worst sufferers were all those who have created their virtual image in the cyber world. They almost faced suffocation as Facebook and WhatsApp too stopped as result of mobile internet ban in J&K.

Incidentally, it was not a blanket-ban and had many features like; mobile internet services of all operators were banned in J&K ,calling facility of private mobile operators were banned in Kashmir but calling services of Bharat Sanchar Nigam Limited(BSNL) subscribers continued in Kashmir and broadband services of BSNL were operational all over J&K. So in this way it appears that half hearted effort was made to stop rumors and hatred to spread via social media. Moreover, now it appears that it just furthered the problems as the real goal to stop the things spreading on the internet failed. Many videos relating to Kashmir violence were updated on YouTube on regular periods. Even youth in Kashmir changed their profile pictures on all social media platforms with the picture of a newly killed militant. It was an act to show and lend their support to the ongoing violence in Kashmir. The people who propagate hatred are well prepared and have availed broadband services by now. With this all they appear to have understood the methods adopted by administration. Questions are now raised as to why only the services of private mobile operators were suspended and how the subscribers of government owned BSNL mobile users got a chance to evade this torturous ban. This rule of differentiating between government and private operators hasn’t gone down well with the people in J&K.

The Jammu region too suffered a lot but not just because of this ban on the internet but also because of the very contrasting attitude of the administration. Many voices were raised during this ban and asked why the internet is banned in the Jammu region? Almost a month back Jammu people had faced internet ban in Jammu as two Shiv temples were desecrated by miscreants. At that time internet services remained operational in the Kashmir region and had no impact on social unrest in Jammu. Now when social unrest happened in Kashmir then why internet ban was implemented in Jammu region. When this issue was raised by the civil society then administration responded that that have apprehension that some areas with Muslim population in Jammu region may also flare up with tension due to Kashmir issue. Sadly, this answer didn’t justify the ban on the whole Jammu region as with the help of telecom operators specific area ban could have been very easy to implement.

Kashmir violence caused loss to business in the state of J&K. It was a peak tourist season due to Amarnath Yatra and both regions always garner benefit out of the tremendous tourist numbers which arrive in the state of J&K. The student community also suffered equally as it was admission season all over the country and various exams are conducted during this time of year. The example was that an important exam of National Eligibility Test (NET) was conducted only in Jammu but was postponed in Kashmir region which impacted the academic career of Kashmir students. It is pertinent to mention here that it is also admission time in University of Jammu and hence sufferings were borne by students in Jammu region too. Overall there was strong resentment in students of J&K as even a simple form nowadays is to be filled and uploaded with the help of the internet. It has also come into notice that a number of private schools in Jammu have started getting admission enquiries from parents in Kashmir due to growing turbulent times. This shows that parents there are now assured that the studies of their children always suffer. These regular bandh habits of Kashmir shows that parents now want to shift their children to Jammu.

Though this short span of terrible days is over in J&K but yet we don’t know what lies ahead. Winds that blew across Kashmir this summer after the death of a militant showed that radicalization is somewhere raising its head once again. This strategy of implementing a ban on the internet could never lessen the anger in Kashmir youth. The Kashmir issue needs a political solution and not a technological solution. Moreover, if this all keeps on happening then maybe we will see the exit of internet services in J&K in near future. So will J&K ever become part of Digital India, a prestigious project of the present central government? An end to this Kashmir turmoil was assumed to happen under the new alliance in the state of J&K. This alliance was alleged to be wedlock of North Pole with South Pole but now these azaadi-slogans and gunshots are said to have again born out of this wedlock. Of all what happened and after facing stones for weeks yet we all desire that we shouldn’t be taken back into history, which we left 20 years back.

Mushrooming Commercial Spaces

In the last three decades, Jammu has turned into a big city with its expanded periphery which stretched very rapidly during this period. This expansion is believed to have been because of the rise in the number of new residential colonies in Jammu. At the moment, the boundaries of the city appear to have expanded up to ten kilometers in all four directions. These new residential areas are a reflection of urbanization as well as some unplanned growth in areas which were earlier the suburb area of Jammu. Earlier, for the people, Jammu city was considered to be an area which lay only on one side of river Tawi, which is now known as old city. Across the Tawi river was the area which in real sense was a small jungle as some people in those days used to go there even for hunting. So small was the periphery of Jammu city, that people in those times used to even cross Tawi River in a small ferryboat which took them from one side to other. Strangely, the so-called “Posh-Colonies” like Gandhi Nagar, Shastri Nagar, Trikuta Nagar, Nanak Nagar, Channi Himmat etc never existed at those times. But these areas grew slowly as people started inhabiting these areas somewhere in late 1970’s onwards.

Firstly, some parts of Jammu city have expanded because of the process of urbanization, as middle class and lower middle class people migrated from rural areas. They came to the city with a hope to get running water, electricity, educational insti­tutions, medical facilities as well as employment opportunities which the city provided to these ru­ral migrants. But most of these migrants could only afford residential lands on the outer circle of the city as the land was very cheap in comparison to areas like Gandhi Nagar, Shastri Nagar, Trikuta Nagar, Nanak Nagar, Channi Himmat etc. Second, but a worrying reason for expansion of Jammu is that people who have been residing in these “Posh-Colonies” are now moving to new outer areas as a bug seems to have struck residents of these areas. This bug has developed a new tendency in residents of these colonies because of which they are converting their residential houses to commercial establishments. Lavish shops with flashy and shiny interiors are witness to mushrooming of commercial spaces in these residential areas. The shine of these shops doesn’t reach the eyes of concerned departments as they seem to have closed eyes on this. Most of such conversions are said to have been done by violating the Master Plan in Jammu. Incidentally, this all appears to have been committed in connivance with the officials of the various enforcement agencies. However, with modernisation and money playing an important role in the life of today’s humans this commercial tendency is witnessed even in the outskirts of Jammu. But the commercialisation activity done in rural and far flung areas have different groups of actors who are making this all possible. In such areas, it is all because of a nexus between the land mafia and concerned officers that illegal constructions are going on rapidly. This all shows the presence of a pure agenda to convert residential colonies into commercial establishments.

This trend overall has added even to prevailing problems by causing adverse impact on Jammu in respect of the basic services like water, transportation and electricity. There is visibly a large change in demand and supply of these services as supply is as per residential area but demand is as per commercial area. Such is the intensity of this rapid commercialisation of residential areas that even internal & narrow lanes in these residential areas have turned into small shopping bazaars. Adding to it, is the new problem of traffic jams, as people park their vehicles on all these internal roads which often lead to complete chaos and blockage in these areas especially during festival season. Various efforts by the Government are said to exist but only within office files as nothing effective yet appears on the ground which can bear some fruit. Many reports were prepared in the past to identify all illegal commercial conversions in order to take action but nothing has happened after that as businesses prosper in these illegally converted establishments. According to many people, MLA’s and prominent influential people residing in these areas have played a key role in the growth of such commercial activities. Enforcement wings exist in all agencies like Jammu Municipal Corporation, Jammu Development Authority, Housing Board etc. but a kind of game goes on in between these agencies wherein they keep shifting the blame from one to other.

Time has come when we need to think where we are heading because of this whole vicious cycle. There are several examples where violations have happened and some matters even went to courts and after court action closure of those establishments became possible. More importantly there are some glaring examples where people in the corridors of power were involved in violations and are entangled in litigation going against them in courts. But we need action to be taken in accordance with the law against the officials responsible for facilitating the glaring violations of the Master Plans. It is not something which happened overnight but yes a decade has passed since this all started. Now onwards, it should all be ensured that such violations don’t take place in future. But in true sense, it will happen only with the will of political masters as their active participation and concern in such matters can only set the wrong into right.

Guru Nanak Nagar Abides By Guru Nanak

This time Jammu region from the state of J&K was in news all over India for very wrong reasons. It all started few days back in a Shiv temple of Roopnagar area of Jammu as a Muslim youth desecrated temple with certain acts which are always unacceptable to humanity. As soon as this news spread people came on roads in Roopnagar and Janipur areas. The chants of BHAM-BHAM BOLE were in the air once again. Many political parties and their cadres too came on roads. Local people started causing damage to public property but gladly no life was lost. The result of it was that Jammu was set on social fire as hatred suddenly grew against Muslim community. Shiver went to people of Jammu as they thought that it may now take the shape of agitation which happened in Jammu in 2008. It took several hours to settle the heat over this issue as administration as well as civil society came eye to eye over this matter. Curfew was imposed and internet services were blocked as social media propagated the idea of negativity in very rapid speed during this time. Some social and political bodies condemned this happening and appealed to the government to punish the culprit who was arrested.

This was not all that was to happen in Jammu. Suddenly, news came in the next few hours that the Roopnagar act has been repeated in Jammu. But this time it was a Sikh guy in Guru Nanak Nagar area who desecrated a Shiv temple. This second act raised many eyebrows and questions were raised as to how an act with many things common in between has happened in Jammu at such a short duration. I myself was a witness to post desecration activities which happened in Nanak Nagar. I witnessed many inspiring brotherhood & harmony scenes which may remain in my memory in life to come. There was hue and cry all over and markets got closed in a few minutes. With every passing minute a number of people grew on the road outside the local Shiv temple. However, all local residents from both communities gathered and stood in unity. The Sikh society immediately condemned the act and wanted that a man who has brought stigma to the community should not be spared. It was a scene to witness as none from the Sikh community defended the act with any excuse. Instead they told Hindu community brethren that they won’t leave the Shiv temple until they get the Sikh guy punished. It was because of the harmonious efforts of both communities that the culprit was booked under Public Safety Act (PSA) within 4 hours.

The residents of Guru Nanak Nagar proved the teachings of Guru Nanak as they maintained communal harmony, peace and brotherhood. Many outsiders came there to aggravate prevailing things as they all even belonged to various social and political groups but the local people from Hindu community told them to leave as they can handle this matter on their own. Such was the stand of the local Shiv temple committee that they even didn’t let outsiders enter the Shiv temple initially, as they knew their real intentions. Police and administration got a sigh of relief as they noticed that the people are united and are doing what wasn’t expected at all. The internal unity and strength of both communities and at such a sensitive situation in turn gave strength to the official machinery which was on its toes. This resulted in ending this tense wave within a few hours and roads in the area once again turned peaceful. The next morning it was as normal as any other day but yes, the temple since then is seeing many new guests who are coming to visit the temple which witnessed the testing times. 

We won’t be wrong if we believe that it was the first time in the history of Jammu that religiously hurt people controlled their emotions. Moreover what prevailed over their emotions were their brains as they made a difference between fair play and foul play. It should be quoted as an example in the whole state and we should understand that we need not flow with the emotions instantly. The starting note of both situations in Roopnagar and Guru Nanak Nagar was quite similar but the ending note was totally opposite. In Guru Nanak Nagar, issue settled down without much application of official machinery tools. Guru Nanak Nagar has become talk of town, as people from all walks of life are praising this area for this show of internal unity which our whole country lacks. As we all know that no religion preaches such acts, it's only a few who set things on fire and make all others burn in that fire. Let’s hope that we all see some better days ahead and won’t ever make our Jammu a place where any eye has something against another eye.

2016 Opportunity & 2019 Target

Once again the Indian democracy witnessed ‘political holi’ when colours like saffron, green, red etc. were in the air. These all colours reflected the love of voters and supporters with one or another political party of India. Interestingly, this ‘political holi’ started as soon as the results of 2016 assembly election were declared a few days back. These post-success celebrations were a must for all parties, who emerged victorious, as they all fought against the tough political winds. These victorious parties included Bhartiya Janta Party (BJP), Trinamool Congress, AIADMK and Left-Front who all did well in one each state where these assembly elections were held. Whereas Congress, celebrated in a very low manner as it won only in Puducherry and in all remaining states there wasn’t much to celebrate politically. Results of 2014 general elections in India brought out a political situation in which things appeared to go all in favour of BJP in the near future in the country. But as we know that, ‘in politics we cannot write obituaries’; many other parties too have done well since the last two years.

2016 assembly results in Assam have given BJP a very big reason to celebrate, as BJP has got the first biggest political mandate in the north east. The results in Assam show that people were tired of Congress rule for the last 15 years. For BJP it was a very crucial election as they have learnt a lot after losing in Delhi and Bihar elections. Importance of Assam for the BJP can be judged clearly as after the results, the BJP declared that they have laid the foundation for 2019 general elections of India. However, this statement was digested by none of the opposition parties in India as they believed that winning only one state cannot lead to good results in 2019. Supporting it is the reality that out of Assam, BJP has only won 5 seats out of more than 600 seats at four places where elections were held. On the contrary, for BJP supporters the result was not about numbers but ‘politics of development’ under Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Adding colour to this ‘political holi’ is the victory of Mamta Banerjee led Trinamool Congress which has won elections in West Bengal for the second time in a row. A lot was said and believed to happen this time in West Bengal but Mamta Banerjee proved all wrong with the thumping majority her party got. Efforts were made by the Left-Front & Congress party by forming a pre-election alliance to stop the march of Mamta Banerjee but they failed in this decisive election. BJP too was left far behind in the numbers tally in West Bengal in spite of whirlwind tours in the state by all senior leaders of BJP.

The winds of celebration are blowing in the Southern part of India also as AIADMK supremo J Jayalalitha defeated M Karunanidhi led DMK-Congress alliance. These assembly elections brought out many record making results. AIADMK too made a record by winning for the second time in a row. This trend was never witnessed in the state of Tamil Nadu after 1980’s. Many theories are coming out as a reason for the victory of AIADMK. For some, it was the impact of the manifesto of AIADMK which contained a long list of freebies. While for others, the alliance partners DMK-Congress made certain strategic mistakes which caused them vote loss. Moreover, in Tamil Nadu also, BJP couldn’t bring in festivity for them even after hectic efforts. The state of Kerala, witnessed once again the surge of Left-Front which faced rout in West Bengal, at the hands of Trinamool Congress just 5 years back. Even 2014 general elections results didn’t bring anything to rejoice for the Left-Front. So nothing much and nothing too soon was expected for Left-Front in their ongoing worst times. But it is said that because of ‘anti-labour policies’ and ‘no-economy revival’ by Narendra Modi led central govt has given Left-Front a chance to reorganize its cadre. Hence, they got a chance to form a government in Kerala.

In total we can see that after these elections two regional parties have risen tremendously. Consequently, these assembly results have produced two new situations in Indian political setup. Firstly, it created opportunity for all parties in the year 2016 and secondly, it gave all parties a target for 2019. Now after the scrutiny of the prevailing political structure a new picture appears in the country.  These results are an opportunity giving event of 2016 for all victorious parties, as they now feel more strengthened in the prevailing Indian political arrangement. This strength has made these all parties to go in brain-storming mode and all of them now have targets for 2019. The target is to win seats in the general elections of 2019 in India and for it all parties have set their eyes. In the present political situation, Trinamool Congress & AIADMK can turn out to be king-makers of 2019 elections. Furthermore, assembly elections in states like Uttar Pradesh and Punjab are due in 2017. If things don’t go as planned for BJP and Congress in these states then more contenders can join this list of king-makers of 2019. In addition to it, voices are already making rounds for forming a third front or grand alliance for 2019 elections in the country against NDA. Parties like Congress, JD (U), RJD, Trinamool Congress, AIADMK, BJD and any non-NDA party who wins Uttar Pradesh and Punjab can be part of this alliance. If this political scene sets in motion then a new political picture will be made in the country. BJP because of this combination may have to re-channelize their plans and energy. This rising opposition within the country can even bring out a new face in 2019 because in politics no failure is permanent.

Politicization Of Educational Institutes

In every country, college and university level education is believed to be a stage where an individual reaches to shape his or her own future. Professional education provided at such institutes take these individuals on a path to progress and prosperity in life. Some countries in the world boast their college and university education as they are known world over for their standards in deliverance of education. Indian college and university education is not among the level of these nations, but yet we also have some colleges & universities which are known world over. No growth could be possible if there are no professionally skilled youth in a country. For this aspect every country tries with the greatest responsibility to build such institutes on its land. The sections of the youth which enter college and university level to get education in a way are believed to be the future of the country.

The Indian education system has produced many pioneers which touched the sky in various fields. We have had many nation building people who did all their college and university education in India. Many people like Late APJ Abdul Kalam were the products of the Indian education system and made a name world over. We have prominent institutes like University of Delhi, Jawaharlal Nehru University, Aligarh Muslim University, Banaras Hindu University, Punjab University and even some private institutes which these days are attracting youth. But as we are in the 21st century, education in India is talked about in terms of IITs and IIMs. Such institutes have become the backbone of the country’s educational image. In this way, the list is endless as far as prominent educational institutes in India are concerned. However, prominence which these institutes gained over the period of time in a way turned some of these learning centers into those who disseminate ‘political ideology’ too. Unfortunately, these learning centers started the transmission of ‘political ideology’ from one batch to another. Now this process has been going on for many decades & has affected every generation of students which came to study there. It is also a result of this, that some students of these premier institutes become followers of one particular ‘political ideology’ only.

This all appeared normal till sometime back in the Indian education system as it was believed that today’s students will be tomorrow’s leaders. All political parties in India nurtured this underlying prevailing political environment of Indian colleges and universities. The best supporting fact to this is the prevalence of the student wing of many political parties in Indian colleges & universities. Such structure has not come into being overnight as this all grew slowly but steadily in India. At present time, it has reached to such a level that now it seems inseparable from college and university life. Politicization of educational institutes is visible in modern India which aims to be among developed nations of the world. Encouragement of political activities in colleges and universities in India was not much controversial as all parties had their share in such a system. But somewhere the result of this politicization of educational institutes reached a new shape when the President of Jawaharlal Nehru Students Union was arrested over a certain controversy raised by him at Jawaharlal Nehru University. The debate over this arrest in Jawaharlal Nehru University issue is unending, as for some those groups of students were nationals who spoke their mind, while for others they were anti-nationals who raised voice against their own country and as per few this whole matter gave birth to a new future leader from Bihar. Another incident also reflected the politicization of educational institutes in country was when a Dalit student from University of Hyderabad committed suicide. This suicide made the political players once again jump into turf to fight the student cause but as per their political ideology. For some he was just a student, for others he was a Dalit student & for remaining he was a soul who succumbed to social pressure. Every eye saw his death in its own way and in a way forgot his real reason for committing suicide

In recent days, we witnessed that from North to South, India was on fire over student issues. Incidentally, these issues went on fire with the high interest contributed by all political parties into it. There was already boiling discontent within the Indian student community over above said matters and another student related controversy erupted at NIT Srinagar. This issue again from being a student issue became an issue of nationals versus anti nationals. Surprisingly, the NIT Srinagar issue once again has symbolized how our students get influenced by the political system of the country. This controversy showed its impact all over J&K state. The civil society in Jammu is again over its toes to lend support to non-local students in Srinagar. Matter slowly has turned in Jammu versus Kashmir as PDP-BJP governments are not able to settle the emotions of their voters. We can see that even after many days, the NIT Srinagar controversy is still not over in J&K. Every other day student’s in Jammu are protesting over the NIT Srinagar incident. Out of all these issues, what we need to think is that, should the hands of students be used to set the social system on fire in the country? Do we always need fire to fight fire? Such practices if continued will give birth to new social set up in the country which will be contrary to the secular and pluralistic ethos of India.

Rebuilding Alliance

The political system in J&K is believed to be among one of the fragile political systems in India. Over these past decades there came many issues which in a way governed the politics of the J&K state. The J&K state because of such issues was governed at that time by parties which were soft in their ideology to those issues which arose. In a way, the democracy in J&K has witnessed a lot. We will not be wrong if we say that the political structure in J&K has gone through many changes in these last six decades. From one- party governments to the coalition governments, the state of J&K has seen a lot. If we talk of coalition combinations which till today have happened in J&K, the last government formed in 2015 between the PDP-BJP is said to be the oddest one. This coalition of PDP-BJP was defined by the then Chief Minister Late Mufti Mohd. Sayeed, as ‘North-Pole meeting South-Pole’.

Initially, this combination of PDP-BJP was said to be for mere hunger for power. Various political analysts made predictions that such a combination will have a very short life as it was formed just for political survival. But as per PDP-BJP the reason which gave birth to such coalition combination was that the different regions of the J&K have different aspirations and all are needed to be addressed. Such has been this development that it is now said to be one of the biggest political developments of the J&K state. This PDP-BJP government arrangement created a lot of buzz even across borders of the state. The whole country also talked of this development with contrasting views over it. The main reason believed for this buzz was that both the parties were ideologically opposite to each other and even fought against each other’s ideology throughout the election campaign of 2014. 

However, after the announcement of the assembly election results PDP-BJP in order to overcome barriers spent almost two months in attempts to bridge all ideological differences. Finally, to govern the state a common minimum programme (CMP) was drafted by forgetting the core ideology of both parties in order to address the aspirations of all regions. Both parties in a way proposed that with a common minimum programme (CMP) they will fill up the regional gap of the state. But after a very short duration of formation of the alliance, the government was shattered with the sudden & untimely death of sitting Chief Minister Mufti Mohd. Sayeed. This death in a way raised eyebrows as PDP-BJP government appeared defunct with no announcement of the new CM candidate by PDP-BJP. The resultant of it was that the state was put under Governor Rule. It was very much understood that Mehbooba Mufti will head the government soon but as some days passed reluctance was shown by the PDP leadership for immediately appointing the new Chief Minister. 

Subsequently a debate in the state started that PDP-BJP coalition is over & several political parties jumped into the arena over this debate. Nevertheless there was no official debate between the coalition partners & both PDP-BJP in a veiled manner supported the fact about existence of the PDP-BJP tie up. Though both the PDP-BJP supporters wanted a resettlement but on a pattern which satisfied their political needs. It in a way became an issue of social prestige for both the parties in the J&K. Moreover with this delay in government formation in J&K, voices were raised in political circles of the state that assembly should be dissolved & fresh elections be conducted. The predictions made in the beginning about short survival of this PDP-BJP government for some appeared almost true. The end of the alliance appeared near as almost three months had passed & the state was still under Governor Rule.  Interestingly, things didn’t turn out in the way it was predicted & finally on 4th April 2016 Mehbooba Mufti took oath as first woman Chief Minister of J&K. It is believed that underground efforts for rebuilding the alliance worked & it resulted in re-formation of PDP-BJP coalition government in the state.

In the year 2015 itself many things were said about the PDP-BJP coalition & even after a short interruption which arose out of the death of Mufti Mohd. Sayeed, working for the state government, was still assumed to be a tightrope for the coalition partners. This assumption again showed some signs between this rebuilt coalition government as soon as the NIT Srinagar issue struck the government in J&K. This issue has left the coalition government red faced as all the opposition parties in a way clubbed over this issue to send the government on back foot. The start to the second innings of this coalition is not good as Jammu & Kashmir once again appeared totally divided over the NIT Srinagar issue. For new Chief Minister Mehbooba Mufti it will not be less than a struggle to manage this coalition which is connected with the emotions of the voters in J&K. It is not an ordinary government, it is a government which has been built on a hope that all regions will witness tremendous change in terms of growth, development & prosperity. Everyone wishes that under the leadership of Mehbooba Mufti there arise no more contradictions within the alliance & the whole state of J & K will witness positive change. But for some, it will always be a coalition which will be an example for ‘politics of survival’ & for others it will be ‘beauty of democracy’.

Immigrating Sikh Youth

Historically, a large number of Sikhs in J&K came in as a result of migration. Post partition, many Sikhs families moved to the Indian side of J&K. Initially, life for all of them was a rebirth wherein they lived to survive on new land which was not their homeland. There were few among them who in initial days thought of going back to their homes once the unrest settled. However, after some time these migrated Sikhs families realized that their homes were now an alien land & far away. So these families started to work hard to earn respect and in turn even succeeded later to get to respectable positions in J&K. It was a difficult phase for the whole Sikh community but their dedication made them survive. They received a good share of social standing in all fields after some years in J&K.

Interestingly, migration could be considered normal if it is because of natural reasons. But in the case of Sikhs it was social and political compulsions which made them move from their homes. Sikh families who migrated & settled in J&K formerly belonged to the community of farmers, police officers, army servants, revenue employees & even businessmen. Of them some were highly educated as Lahore, known for educational institutions at that time, was close to the areas they earlier lived in. But the miserable situation of life changed their status as they came to this side of the border. Now no one was poor & no one was rich, what was left was just a will to survive on new land. The Sikh families which came to Jammu settled at colonies like Guru Nanak Nagar, Bhour Camp, Simbal Camp, Badyal Brahmna, Bandhurakh etc. Those days when these areas were inhabited by migrated Sikhs it was not less than a jungle. These were the most far flung areas of Jammu as Jammu was limited to only the old city. All the families shared the equal pain of very less water, no roads, no electricity etc in these areas. 

But those were the old days, now you visit these areas & it gives you a sense of growth the Sikh community has been able to achieve in J&K. The kids of those migrated parents are now well settled, some doing jobs & some have become businessmen. This growth in life is reflected in some of the families as generational shift has brought some good old days for them in J&K. One of the reasons for growth in these areas is that the next generation of these settled Sikh parents are now immigrating to foreign countries like the USA, UK, Australia, Canada & even to Europe. This stratum of youth is immigrating by choice & their grandparents were not given a chance to make choice when they left their homes. Some people in Sikh community feel that this rising immigration is like the same situation which their grandparents faced i.e. life of inconvenience in a new country where settling is a big task. It is said that for these immigrating youth an average time taken for settlement in foreign country is three months. These first three months are the most difficult ones, as from getting a job to finding a place to live, are the tasks which are needed to be fulfilled. They in the beginning move to someone's house that is known to them, however that is a temporary shelter not a permanent one. In matters relating to jobs also they face exploitation at hands of natives there. This new generation of Sikh youth is believed to be moving for greener pastures in terms of living standard, money & luxuries which these countries provide. In addition to it, there are many problems ranging from religion to food habits which they have to face. There are some cases where we see youth succumbing to social pressure. In turn, they leave behind all religious & social values they came with. Interestingly, this craze of going to foreign countries is so much in Sikh youth that they are even ready to go in illegal manner & later languish in jails there. Another method which is famous & easy is ‘spouse visa method’ wherein getting the visa to visit these countries is a bit easier.

It is pertinent to mention here that there are many success stories also of Sikh youth from J&K who have flourished abroad. Nowadays there is no lane in these Sikh colonies of Jammu from where a youth has not landed on foreign shores. However, life rules each individual differently & it is not necessary that all get the same. There are also some cases, where youth are immigrating just because of peer pressure. In such cases they return back after facing several problems & even losing out money. The growing system of immigration depicts a life cycle in which migrated parents built a nest for their family & now these youth are leaving that nest to further develop a one for them. Incidentally, youth is very important for every society & it’s a treasure of every community. So for Sikh community today, it’s like losing out this treasure because of every single immigration. The process is slow yet effective and its result will be visible only after some few more years. We cannot prevent the growth but surely prevent the growing need & desires of this generation which takes them away from their homes & families.

Keep Off Fast Food

This generation of youth seems to have developed a liking for fast food to a great extent. This fact is commonly noticeable in Jammu as we find fast food available all over Jammu city & in turn these places mobbed specially by the youth. The growth of this fast food culture has started in the past few years only. However this growth has been so fast that it in a way has covered every nook & corner of Jammu. The people of Jammu have never been inclined to such food in the past but because of its easy availability & cheap prices it has intruded into every kitchen in Jammu. If we go back a few years in our memory then we are sure to recall that such food & its availability was poor or even nil in the Jammu area. It is also said to be the result of the modernisation that we people have adapted to new eating habits. For some it is also a mode of showing exclusivity that they know the art of eating with fork & knife. 

The mushrooming of these fast food points have been done in a strategic manner. If we notice then we may find that they are commonly sighted near the areas where footfall is really high. Further analysis of this fast food culture shows that these fast food joints are opened near schools, colleges, residential localities or even in a planned manner in malls & shopping complexes. The famous area in the old city like Rani Park or Pacca Danga which is known for its nearby schools & tuition centers is a witness to this massive fast food business. As this area has a footfall of thousands of students who visit school, colleges or tuition centers around it. These students prefer eating at such fast food joints which cater to their urge of eating out by providing cheap & ready to eat items. The residential areas of Jammu like Gandhi Nagar & Channi Himmat too appear to be submerged by this culture of fast food. Every lane in these areas has something or other to provide in the name of fast food. In addition, when we visit any of the malls in Jammu then the most commonly visible shops there will be for eating facilities & that too specializing in fast food. In a way this fast food reaches us or we reach it is a part of unending debate.

The effect of this fast food is making its impact on the health of all & especially the youth. If we go by the research in the medical field then we have proven examples which truly blame fast food for impacting the life of humans. In other words if we look around then we can see obesity on rise in youth. The youth of the day is appearing more obese than the youth of one generation older to them. The era of DHOODH, DAHI & DESI GHEE has been replaced by MOMO, CHOWMEIN & PIZZA the result of which is obesity. Though the convenience of life & lifestyle is adding to obesity too but the major factor is fast food. If we go in for a medical test of this fast food driven youth then surely we will find 50-60 percent of today’s youth suffering from fatty liver. It is just one side which represents physical degradation of the human body. There are many more things which are used as ingredients in fast food that harm the body.

We cannot blame anybody for giving away something which harms us if we consume it knowingly on our own. Here comes the role of individuals who eat out as well as family members who bring fast food to their home for consumption by kids. Similar is the case of some working women, as they prefer their kids to be fed on fast food in order to avoid cooking at home. At many fast food joints, grandparents are seen standing along with their grandchildren just to fulfill the child's desire of child. The loved ones are being treated on such fast food even by ignoring the ill effects of it. There is nothing bad in going out once in a blue moon for such food but the ill effect of it starts when fast food becomes a replacement of DAL & ROTI. To some extent the harm has been done, as there is so easy & so much availability of fast food in Jammu. This easy & much availability itself shows that fast food is in demand as no one would go for such business which won’t give back profitable returns. The need is to curtail its consumption as it may develop serious life threatening diseases & the youth of this generation may lose the charm of youthful days of life.

Republic Day– A Silent Celebration

26th January, 1950 is a day from where India started its journey among the countries that had their own Constitution. It is the most important document as it became the basis for the growth of the country on defined patterns. For the growth & direction Indian Constitution provided to the country it is now also known as the supreme law of the country. Since 1950 onwards, this day has been celebrated all over India with enthusiasm. Various programs are held across the country and flag-hoisting ceremonies in educational & political circles are the prominent one. But it is becoming a trend nowadays in India that people just sit at home and watch the live telecast of the Prime Minister's speech from the Red Fort in Delhi. Since there are only few who go out to celebrate & attend the cultural programs hence it reflects lack of spirit in the present generation. This feeling of celebration is limited only till the time they watch TV.  After that it is just a routine day for all.

Interestingly, the celebration of Republic Day in India is becoming more like a silent celebration. One of the reasons for it is also that ahead of the Republic Day celebrations, various nationwide security alerts are issued. It has become a yearly affair as we see at many places police personnel in large numbers being deployed like the country is in an emergency situation. Such an environment on this particular day, gives a feeling of curtailment of rights. It appears so contrary to the day when rights itself were guaranteed by coming into being of Indian Constitution. With so much vigil, strictness etc people all over India don’t prefer to come out of their houses to take part in the celebrations.

Spirit of Republic Day celebrations are very low among the people in J&K also because markets carry a deserted look on such an important day. In addition to it, a tense atmosphere prevails in J&K that makes people preferring to sit back at home as they feel endangered in going out. This existing mindset in J&K people is somewhere killing the celebration charm of this day in J&K also. People in J&K with every passing year are forgetting the real pride we should have on this day. Tight security arrangements all over the state make movement of people very regulated and people feeling troubled to go out, resulting in them preferring to be at home. The day should be celebrated with open shops & bazaars giving a feel of festival but sadly the day causes restrictions on a person to move freely and independently. On the other hand in the valley, separatists give boycott calls & ask people to remain indoors leading to closure of shops and markets. The entire population of Kashmir in a way is also held hostage by these calls of separatists.

Such a way in which celebrations are done purely depicts that we are made to celebrate this day in a silent way. The young generation, especially youth of the state as well as country, talk about such restrictions with surprise. However, they are made to understand about this situation with many reasoning’s which convince the few. What does this situation imply? There may be many answers, but surely it is becoming just like any other regular day of the year. It is pertinent to mention here that this lack of interest in the Republic Day celebrations among the common citizens is somewhere a reflection that the citizens of India are truly not participating. Moreover, it won’t appear wrong to say that celebrations are just at official levels for the last six decades but haven’t reached every heart which beats in this country for the country.

Surge Of Drugs In Jammu

21st century was believed to be of the youth & for the youth. But as we have entered it, we now find that there is something more in it which has gained importance for the youth. At the present time, the thing which seems to be becoming part of the life of 21st century youth is DRUGS. The statement may seem superficial but it is the hidden truth of our society in Jammu. It is one such factor which is found to be common in all youth irrespective of the religion they belong to in the state of Jammu & Kashmir. There is no such religion in our state which can claim its youth to be DRUG FREE these days. It has now become a trend among youth of Jammu to use drugs. In addition to it, there is a gender race in Jammu as boys & girls compete with each other as far as drug consumption is concerned. This trend is so high that the youth in Jammu who are not into it are believed to be narrow minded or are treated like an outcast by his or her friends. 

The fact which supports this prevalence of drugs in Jammu is the everyday news we read in newspapers wherein we read about the seizure of drugs by police. Furthermore it has been found that the frequency of these seizures in Jammu is increasing in comparison to some last few years. Also during seizure of drugs it is seen that there are various new types of drugs which are circulated in Jammu to target the youth. From a simple intoxicating tablet to high level drugs like charas, ganja, & heroine we find all being provided to youth in Jammu. The working set-up of drug peddlers in Jammu is purely based on demand & supply method where a planned process is used for selling drugs to youth of Jammu. The drug market in Jammu is so deep rooted that it is very easily available in every dark & narrow lane of the town. There are some specific areas where youth of Jammu go to consume these drugs. Many cases have come to light where boys & girls belonging to prominent families of Jammu were caught moving in their private cars while consuming drugs. One segment of the youth in Jammu is those who are working on commission basis for selling these drugs. They have somewhere started acting like couriers who carry drugs & deliver at the required place. The main reason for this drug peddling by the local Jammu youth is the easy money making chance it gives to them. These figures of young people who are consuming drugs are supported by an equal number of young people who are selling it in Jammu purely for earning extra bucks.

There is a well operated and organized mafia which is supplying drugs particularly in Jammu. The mafia which is working to spread this poison has even defined the jurisdiction of these boys who act as their courier .The working style of the mafia which is selling all these drugs at times seems to show that they have a support of the social system. It cannot be believed when there is a tremendous surge of drugs & it has spread its tentacles to such a wide level without any agency getting to know about its prevalence. Though police machinery of state claim to take a number of steps to tackle the menace of drug use in the state, yet the persons involved in smuggling of drugs and psychotropic substances are able to do it at mass level. Interestingly, there has been an increase in the cases related to drug addiction mostly among school/college-going students which reflects the true side of this problem. Some drug de-addiction centers have been established at Srinagar, Jammu, Anantnag and Baramulla by the police department where counseling and treatment is given to the addicted persons but yet youth is neck deep into it. It is also believed that there are some men in uniform who at times close their eyes to this surge of drugs though it happens very much under their nose. The reason for doing this may be best known to them. However, they should know that these drugs could someday reach someone close to them who becomes a target of this drug mafia in Jammu.

We never ever found our civilizations to be drug free but we also never had the youth who were into it to such a deep level. Some of the reasons noticed for this surge of drugs in Jammu are peer pressure, freedom given by parents to their wards, social media and moreover the biggest of them is the anti social elements. There are many NGOs who are working against drugs in Jammu but seem that little could be achieved. The social forces who work to stop this spreading of drugs in society are far lesser than the forces working for the spread of drugs. Hence, with this it appears that evil may win this war of drugs. The intensity of this rising drug culture in Jammu is so fast that we may be left far behind if not acted upon at the earliest. We need to save the youth as they are not the children of one particular family or of any religion but they are the future of this country.

HSRP Losing Its Sheen

Ever since we have seen the rise of vehicles in our country, gradually a rise in involvement of vehicles in crime was also witnessed. Though every vehicle has an identity because of registration plates but yet vehicles were stolen or used in crime by changing these registration plates. In order to streamline this vehicle theft & involvement in crimes a plan for fitting vehicles with High Security Registration Plate (HSRP) was conceived in 1989 in India. But the implementation process for this scheme was delayed because of one or the other reason in the last some decades in India. The Supreme Court of India finally took notice of this repeated delays and the matter got updated in 2004 when the Supreme Court of India directed all states to comply with the High Security Registration (HSRP) number plate’s scheme. The resultant of this was that on June 1, 2005, the Indian government amended rule 50 of the Central Motor Vehicles Rules, 1989, wherein introduction of new tamper proof High Security Registration Plate (HSRP) number plates was made mandatory. As we know, changing things for the better in India is a tough job, same happened in case of High Security Registration Plate (HSRP) scheme. Though amendments were made, nothing was visible on ground for implementation of High Security Registration Plate (HSRP) number plates. So in order to further strengthen this process, the Supreme Court of India in April 2011 even summoned some states for contempt proceedings regarding non enforcement of the High Security Registration Plate (HSRP) scheme.

In pursuance to the order passed by the Hon’ble Supreme Court of India, Jammu and Kashmir government also in June 2012 introduced High Security Registration Plate (HSRP) system in the state. Initially when High Security Registration Plate (HSRP) system was started in Jammu & Kashmir, as regards the new vehicles, the High Security Registration Plate (HSRP) were being affixed in a very appropriate manner at the time of registration by making it mandatory to be affixed for getting the Registration Certificate (RC) released. But as time has passed the dust is getting deposited on this High Security Registration Plate (HSRP) system because of various reasons. One major factor which is considered the main reason for its worsening is the prevalent agent-employee nexus at Regional Transport Office (RTO), Jammu. This agent-employee nexus is not new & people have turned old in this system which is being run there. It is not something which is not known to the administration & political bosses who are running the govt. But yet it has been allowed to go on with a blind eye turned to it. The resultant of this is that the visibility of High Security Registration Plate (HSRP) is getting low again in Jammu as people are again fitting some fancy plates on new vehicles. In the beginning no one was allowed to get Registration Certificate (RC) but as the High Security Registration Plate (HSRP) scheme has got old now the agent-employee nexus has taken over in its working too. Nowadays, the influential get their Registration Certificate (RC) released in connivance with agent-employee nexus at Regional Transport Office (RTO), Jammu.

However, as regards the old registered vehicles also a scheme was prepared by the Regional Transport Office (RTO), Jammu to bring them too under High Security Registration Plate (HSRP). In furtherance of that, one series at a time of the vehicles were being taken up for the affixation of High Security Registration Plate (HSRP), in order to carry out the process to cover all the old registered vehicles. For that wide publicity through press releases by the Regional Transport Office (RTO), Jammu were given from time to time to make people aware of the vehicle number series that are being taken up for High Security Registration Plate (HSRP). For all people, High Security Registration Plate (HSRP) suggested itself as a highly secure number plate aimed to bring about a uniform pattern of registration plates along with serving the security purpose too. Although an initiative was taken to bring a change with the help & efforts of various stratum of society yet it seems that the process couldn’t be taken to its logical conclusion. Technically also if we look into High Security Registration Plate (HSRP) it shows that in no time it will be defunct as many safety features in these plates are too going unutilized because of non availability of gadgets to use these features. Need of the hour is that we should have a relook at the flaws prevalent for implementation of the High Security Registration Plate (HSRP) in Jammu or else it will be too late to do what is required.

Sports In A Limbo

These days whatever players or so called budding sports talent of the state we see are mostly because of their personal craze which they develop for sports. There is a very serious and debatable issue for our state that it lacks the real approach and professionalism towards sports. When we think of sports, we take it as a pastime, for fitness or for leisure. People in Jammu and Kashmir believe there is no scope in sports as a career. We can clearly see in our surroundings people refraining their children from opting for sports as a career.  The sports scenario in the state of Jammu and Kashmir is lagging far behind to all other north Indian states. There are states like Punjab & Haryana where we see many Olympians, Asian & other international players. Nowadays when enormous talent from all the states is competing at international platforms and bringing laurels to their respective state, there’s barely a name from Jammu and Kashmir. This is perhaps because of the lack of proper infrastructure and coaching facilities that the sportsmen require to develop and compete at important platforms. The ailing services and facilities that are available from J&K Sports Council are not enough for the proper development of different sports in the state. Sports are trapped in politics in Jammu and Kashmir as we can see most of the Sports Associations in Jammu and Kashmir are headed by politicians or their affiliates. It could also be taken as one of the reasons why our state lags behind despite a huge talent of sportspersons. It is a matter of great concern that in Jammu and Kashmir State some people are selected in the team based on favoritism and bribes. Even though a huge amount is spent on training and grooming of players we have not been able to achieve a proportionate result. However a fundamental problem of this lies in the absence of sporting culture in India as here sports is considered a secondary activity.

We see that an average Indian child gets access to sport facilities only till the school age. The facilities probably will be there for one or two sports that are too shared by so many children and many do not have such facilities. Even those who have access to facilities cannot use them properly due to the load of education which is making our young generation overburdened. There are many reasons that trouble the sportspersons in our country. Of them all, one is of financial constraints as many sportspersons do not get a chance to travel to big sporting events held outside the country and the reason always is the lack of funds. This is the reason why only a limited number of sportsmen travel for foreign events. Such conditions also prevail in our state as not much funds are given for promotion of sports in Jammu and Kashmir. It is also witnessed that more officials than the number of sportspersons travel for foreign events and they enjoy free holidays along with their families. None of the sportspersons knows what all these officials do and what they help in during these events abroad.

Sports excellence does not come naturally to people based on their natural talents. There comes a time when little grooming is to be done in a professional way to the sportsmen. Interestingly no such facilities are visible in our state. In addition, only the rich could afford enrollment into such facilities outside the state because naturally talented people may not be rich enough to use the limited sports infrastructure. At the same time the rich people who enroll into the facilities may not excel due to the absence of natural instincts in them for such sports. Many people possessing natural abilities had to cut short their careers due to the inability to hire quality coaches and no sources to fund the same. Though several politicians and bureaucrats are associated with sports associations even in the state of Jammu and Kashmir, no one takes note of serious problems of sportsmen. All they care is power and some glamor which is attached to being into such associations. Very few of them would have tried to sort the problems faced by players in Jammu and Kashmir despite spending money on meetings for formulation of broad sports policy.

Despite its huge population India is always at bottom in the Olympics tally because of lack of the facilities provided in India. The dreams of sportspersons of winning medals for India are shattered as they are not provided with proper resources in India. Our country still lacks good coaches, proper infrastructure and other helpful schemes which the government can provide like those being done by many western nations. Indian sportsmen should be provided more financial and institutional support in order to compete at international events. Problem lies with the management of sports and not the sportsmen. I salute the spirit of Indian sportspersons, who till today have succeeded despite the odds prevailing in the country. They all are the pride of millions, but often the lives of our sportsperson do not bear the value their medals have. While their victories are cherished, lots of sportspersons are forgotten after the fan fare is over in the country. There is a serious need to restructure the sports and make it compatible with the education scenario of the country & in turn should be followed by all states too. This only in the end can help us to shape our talent to play the games as a representative of the whole nation.