Economy and Education After Abrogation Of Article 370

Core sectors of the economy of J&K have witnessed a steep decline after the abrogation of Article 370. Due to the communications blockade, curfews, and militant threats, in the past five months alone, the economy of Kashmir lost INR 178.78  billion and more than 90,000 jobs in the sectors of handicraft, tourism and information technology.The horticulture sector is in distress, tourism is in shambles, and students are suffering because of the ongoing internet blockade. It is for the first time in the past 70 years that rural Kashmir is facing such a great degree of economic slowdown. The apples industry in Kashmir, worth INR 80 billion which contributes eight percent of J&K’s GDP, has been worst affected. Threats from militants, coupled with the government’s severe clampdown delayed the harvest for over a month, dealing a crippling blow to the industry during the peak harvest season. By the time the government intervened and apple produce was procured and marketed by NAFED, the damage had been done. Much before this intervention, hundreds of farmers were forced to either sell their produce at throwaway prices or just watch their produce rot.

The continuing internet blockade has severely affected college and university students. College students and research scholars, for instance, have not been able to fill the online forms for competitive exams, scholarship grants and research papers. Most of the hostels in the Kashmir University are shut indefinitely. Internet access to university libraries has been disrupted, increasing the stress levels of students. The students see this as a “deliberate policy of New Delhi” to keep them out of contention for national- and international-level competitions. The respondents also complained that with personal access to internet services cut, they have had to queue for long hours outside district headquarters, the only government offices where public access to internet services is being provided. Besides wasting precious time, each student has had to shell out INR 100 to 200 per online submission at these offices.