In Kashmir, school chale hum, after 7 months

Rifat Mohidin in Srinagar

Insha Mushtaq sustained pellet injuries in 2016 during the unrest in Kashmir when top militant commander Burhan Wani was killed in a gunfight in Anantnag. She lost her eyesight. Now 18, the visually-impaired Insha entered her classroom for the first time after seven months in February-end. Mental trauma, say teachers at Delhi Public School in Srinagar, was writ large on her face.

A week later, after extensive counselling and “you can do it” confidence-instilling sessions, Insha has her smile back, and the yearning to attend school, 60 km from her house in Shopian, where she learns Braille and gets computer training, her favourite subject. Her teacher Qurat-ul-Ain manages a smile too. “It is such a relief. Imagine being away from school for such a long time, not being able to go out of home or communicate with friends. She is excited and has also completed her science assignments. Impressive, without a doubt,” she says.

It was on August 5 last year when schools across the Valley, numbering 10,000, were shut as Article 370 was abrogated. Even when restrictions were eased, parents refused to send children to school citing safety concerns. A three-month winter break was announced in December. If it was tough for students and parents, it was equally difficult for the faculty and the school administrators.

Insha’s can be considered an isolated case — she joined school in March last year after two agonising years undergoing eye treatment — but in Kashmir, a ‘normal’ school experience can have connotations very different from other parts of the country.

“We wanted the schools to open but everything was dependent on the situation and the cooperation from parents. There is 100 per cent attendance in schools now. The situation has improved and we are hopeful that the syllabus can be completed on time and all the regular activities shall continue as per the formulated academic calendar,” a senior government official said.

Welcome sight

There was chaos on the roads on February 24 as schools re-opened, but no one was complaining. The rush of school buses and students in uniforms was a sight the Valley had been waiting for since long. More than 10 lakh students in Kashmir had not attended school for months together.

Peculiar situations demand unconventional solutions. So, some schools went in for mass promotion of students, while others did hold examinations but opted for home assessment to upgrade students to the next class.

This has been one of the longest periods that schools have remained shut in Kashmir. Uzma Amin, 16, who studies at Government Higher Secondary School, Amira Kadal, says that when schools closed last year, she and her classmates were in the middle of their golden exams. “We suffered a lot as our Class XI syllabus was not complete. We had to study on our own, without much help. We had to give exams on the Central Board of Secondary Education pattern but on the basis of self-study,” she adds.

Uzma, who is in Class XII now, hopes that peace prevails. “It is a good feeling to see your teachers and friends after a long time. We want that the situation should remain peaceful. This time is very crucial for us.”

Another student, Rufaida Akbar of Pulwama, however, is critical. “Our childhood is being snatched. It seems we come to school for two months a year. Sitting at home for long makes many students face health issues. It surely affects your enthusiasm and passion. We want to excel, but mentally we are very stressed,” she says. “We cannot be dependent on the school and cannot also fight the situation. We can only hope for the best.”

GN Var, chairman of the Private Schools Association Kashmir (PSAK), agrees that the “loss is immense”.

“This is a long disconnect with classes for students. We hope that academics should be kept away from politics and made conflict-neutral. We cannot afford such a loss for our children,” he points out, adding that the schools are considering different initiatives at their own level to compensate for the loss suffered by students.

Back at Insha’s classroom, Munaza Mohi-ud-Din, in charge of the Department of Resource Learning Centre at Delhi Public School where she studies, says that for children with special needs, the long time away from their regular classes means a return to where they started from.

“Among them, there is an increased tendency to forget. They usually do not remember things for long. And we have to again start from the beginning. They need to recall everything,” she adds.

A glance at Insha and others, though, and the teachers appear joyful again. Hope does not accept an easy defeat.