Srinagar, Jammu & Kashmir: “I have no future here”, said S*, a 32-year-old PhD holder from Jammu & Kashmir (J&K), who asked not to be identified. “Education is valued on paper, not in reality.”
S completed her PhD in Botany on the impact of climate change on J&K’s biodiversity in 2019.
She said she spent years studying because she believed that education would build a future for her.
Instead, multiple rejections, in response to her applications for a job as assistant professor in five institutions over the past six years have left her disillusioned.
“I applied to so many colleges, but they always had an excuse, too qualified, not enough industry experience, or just another contractual position with no security,” she said.
She now tutors school students in science while saving money in preparation to leave Kashmir.
Despite promises from Prime Minister Narendra Modi in 2019 to boost employment in the region and senior Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leaders to create 500,000 jobs, data show that J&K has one of the highest unemployment rates in India, particularly among its youth and women.
The latest Periodic Labour Force Survey (PLFS) data for October to December 2024 showed that J&K's unemployment rate was 11.8%, against the national average of 6.4%.
Issued by the union ministry of statistics and programme implementation's national statistics office, PLFS data for the October-December 2024 quarter showed a 35.3% unemployment rate among urban youth aged 15-29 and 52.7% among females aged 15-29 in urban areas in the region, both the highest in the country since April 2024.
The national average for these segments was 16.1% and 21.4% respectively.
The directorate of employment (DoE) in J&K reported that 31% of the youth—109,000 of 352,000—registered as unemployed in the first quarter of 2024 were graduates and postgraduates.
According to PLFS data for 2023-24, the unemployment rate for graduates in J&K was 22.3%, while the unemployment rate for postgraduates was 23.8%, compared to 13% and 12.4% nationally.
Failing to secure steady work, these degree holders are drifting towards odd jobs, such as selling dry fruits roadside, while applying for jobs outside the state.
Promises Vs Reality
In August 2019, the union government ended J&K's statehood and special status and made it a union territory, bringing it under New Delhi's direct control.
In an 8 August 2019 address to the nation, Prime Minister Narendra Modi, discussing the abrogation of Article 370, said, “Vacant posts in Jammu and Kashmir will be filled. This will benefit the youth of Jammu and Kashmir. Local youth will receive employment. State and private companies will be encouraged to create jobs for local youth.”
“We have to build a naya (new) Kashmir,” Modi said at a public rally in September 2019. “The decision to revoke Article 370…is going to fulfil the aspiration and dreams of the people of Jammu and Kashmir.”
In May 2022, Article 14 reported how Modi was making new promises and repeating old ones, as unemployment spiralled, as we found chemistry graduates and taxi drivers working at construction sites.
On 24 April 2022, Modi, while announcing an investment of about Rs 20,000 crore, promised an end to the “miseries” of the youth of J&K.
“I want to tell the youth of J&K to have faith in my words,” said Modi. “You will not see the miseries witnessed by your parents and grandparents.”
Instead, unemployment in J&K now is worse than the national average.
Worse Than National Average
With a literacy rate of 67%, according to the 2011 Census—the latest available data—unemployment in a region with little industry was always a problem, but there is little doubt, said experts, that it was exacerbated by the tension and sweeping security crackdowns after Modi’s government struck off Article 370 without consulting J&K’s electorate.
In September 2024, during an election rally in Doda district, in eastern J&K, the chairman of J&K BJP’s manifesto committee and former deputy chief minister, Nirmal Singh, pledged to create “500,000 jobs within the first 180 days if the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) came to power. ”
This meant 400,000 positions in the private sector and 100,000 in the government sector.
Since 2019-20, J&K’s unemployment rate has been consistently higher than the national average.
According to PLFS data, the unemployment rate for Jammu and Kashmir was 6.7% in 2019-2020, compared to the national average of 4.8%.
It decreased to 5.9% in 2020-2021 and 5.2% in 2021-2022. The national unemployment rate was 4.2% in 2020-2021 and 4.1% in 2021-2022.
The unemployment rate for J&K was 4.4% in 2022-23 and 6.1%—tied for eighth highest for all states and union territories—in 2023-24, compared to the national unemployment rate of 3.2% for both years.
The region's lack of jobs has also led to universities in the state reporting low academic enrolment.
‘I Couldn't Face Them’
People with degrees are now forced to work odd jobs like roadside vendors or move out of J&K to make ends meet.
Article 14 spoke with three PhD holders and an MBA holder from the Valley: they struggled to find work that matched their qualifications, they said.
Manzoor Ul Hassan, PhD, with a double BED degree, from J&K’s Pulwama district, runs a small but busy roadside cart selling dry fruits and spices in the crowded market of southern Kashmir’s Shopian, nearly 57 km from Srinagar city.
“I have a PhD in political science and a PG (postgraduate degree) in political science and public administration,” said Hassan. “I have two diplomas in disaster management and computer application.”
Hassan said he worked as a contract lecturer for 12 years before Article 370 was abrogated in August 2019 and that he lost his job because of “political instability”.
Hassan said he hoped to become a teacher again, but two years of unemployment while searching for work as a college lecturer led him to set up a coaching institute for higher secondary students.
“In the year 2021 to 2022, as things began to settle in J&K, I opened a coaching institute in Bijbhehara, in the northern part of J&K,” said Hassan. “But after policy changes from the government, I lost my job again and became unemployed.”
In October 2022, the J&K school education department blocked private schools from starting admissions to change the start of the school academic year.
The decision to block private school admissions impacted coaching centres like Hassan’s.
These centres rely heavily on student enrollment tied to school admission cycles. With students dropping out in droves, Hassan's centre shut down.
“I do not have the resources to set up and run a private school,” he said as he attended to customers at his roadside stall.
After Hassan closed the coaching center, he set up the dry fruit cart.
“All the family members are dependent on Allah, after that on me, and that made me open this stall,” he said.
Hassan has two daughters, 11 and 13.
Hassan said he did not tell his family and friends that he had run a roadside cart for “two long years”.
Only his wife knew where he went in the morning.
“It was the most difficult time for me in my whole life, like a nightmare,” said Hassan. “After everyone got to know about my cart, I couldn't even face them, especially my parents and daughters.”
Hassan said a video of his plight went viral on social media last year, yet no government official offered help.
“I became a street vendor to assist my family, and all I can say is it is a forced job for me that I have chosen to give better education to my daughters and a good life for my parents,” said Hassan.
‘I Feel Like A Failure’
Other unemployed scholars who Article 14 spoke to requested anonymity because they did not want friends and family to know.
M*, aged 33, who completed her PhD in February 2024, said being highly qualified and jobless was “suffering like hell”.
“Please don’t mention my name or location. Just mention ‘one of the PhD holders from Kashmir’,” she said. “Trust me, I have faced the music for speaking out.”
M said she unsuccessfully applied for teaching jobs in educational institutions in the state over the last year.
“I remember one interview at a local college. I felt prepared, and my qualifications matched perfectly,” said M. “But after a positive interview, I received a generic rejection call for no specific reason, just that ‘another candidate was a better fit. '”
M said her struggle with unemployment had taken a toll on her mental and physical health. “The feeling of being useless despite years of hard work is crushing,” she said. “I often experience anxiety and have trouble sleeping.”
M said losing her professional identity has also affected her social life. “People ask, ‘What are you doing now?’ and I struggle to answer,” she said. “I feel like a failure, even though I know I am not.”
While she said her parents remain proud of her academic achievements, they worry about her future, adding to the stress at home, as she depends on their support.
M said she tried looking for freelance work, but it remains inconsistent. “Every day is a calculation, a constant worry about making ends meet.”
M, who said she hoped to move abroad, expressed frustration over reservation policies.
“There have been many jobs I was qualified for, but I wasn’t even considered,” she said. “It’s hard to see less qualified people securing positions I spent years working towards.”
In December 2023, the Lok Sabha passed the Jammu and Kashmir Reservation (Amendment) Bill, allowing for further reservations for scheduled tribes in employment, educational institutions and the J&K legislature.
In March 2024, the J&K government, under lieutenant governor Manoj Sinha, approved a 10% quota for the Pahari ethnic tribe, Paddari tribe, Kolis and Gadda Brahmins and increased the reservation for other backward classes to 8%.
This increase in reservation rates means that 60% of government jobs fall under the reserved category.
The changes led to protests and a cabinet subcommittee to review the reservation policy, though no deadline was set for the committee to submit its report. Multiple petitions challenging the reservation policy are currently in the J&K High Court.
M spoke about the fear of openly discussing such issues in Kashmir.
“There is always a fear of being labelled or targeted. I have seen others face social isolation or professional backlash,” she added.
‘This Is Not The Career I Envisioned’
Showkat, a 25-year-old resident of Shopian, who asked that his full name not be published, is currently pursuing an MA in Urdu literature. He said he believed that the job crisis in Kashmir affected everyone, regardless of category.
A beneficiary of reservation, he has been applying for positions as a lecturer in government colleges for the past three to four years without success.
“Despite reservation benefits, the ground reality remains tough,” he said. “Competition within the reserved category is also intense, vacancies are limited, and the selection process is unpredictable.”
Currently employed as a low-ranking government employee, he admitted that the job is not what he aspired to. “This is not the career I envisioned—it’s something I was forced into due to financial pressures,” he said.
He added that despite multiple attempts at civil services exams, he has yet to secure his desired position.
Showkat pointed out that economic background and access to resources played a crucial role even within the reserved category. “Many of us lack the financial means to afford high-quality coaching for competitive exams, which puts us at a disadvantage compared to those who can,” he said.
Showkat said his current job was “far below” his academic credentials, but he continued working due to societal expectations and prepared for competitive exams.
“This job has come at the cost of compromising my dreams,” he said. “But with an uncertain future, financial security is crucial. That’s why I’m still pushing myself to clear the civil services exams.”
Showkat expressed frustration over recruitment delays and policy uncertainties. “Every time a recruitment drive is announced, there’s either a delay, cancellation, or controversy,” he said. “It feels like we are constantly stuck in a cycle of uncertainty.”
‘Unemployment Is The Biggest Challenge’
The PLFS data for July-September 2024 showed the unemployment rate among young women (aged 15-29) in J&K reached 53.6%, compared to the national average of 21%.
Nazia Israr, a 32-year-old research scholar from Srinagar in the final year of her PhD in economics, described unemployment as more than just a financial burden and called it “an emotional strain” and a cause of social exclusion.
“Unemployment is the biggest challenge for our youth, especially those pursuing higher degrees like PhDs,” she said.
“After years of hard work, when you finally achieve the ‘Doctorate’ title, you expect opportunities to follow,” Israr said. “But in Jammu and Kashmir, the reality is disheartening.”
People in J&K depend overwhelmingly on government jobs as the region lacks an industrial base.
Yet, in November 2024, Chief Minister Omar Abdullah said, “Reality is that we can’t give government jobs to everyone.”
“But until we increase the private sector, we will not be able to treat this disease of unemployment,” he added. “We hope that big owners will come from abroad and set up factories here, but they will not.”
Israr said the lack of jobs in J&K was due to "the weak private sector and rare government recruitments”.
Israr said there were only two recruitment drives for assistant professors in government colleges in J&K in the last decade, in 2014 and 2023.
Israr said she was disappointed by a 2023 J&K Public Service Commission policy change in recruiting lecturers to colleges in the region.
She noted that PhD holders previously received 15 extra marks in the selection process, which was reduced to just five in 2023.
Israr also pointed out that research papers, requiring years of dedication, were now valued at only five marks out of 100 in the recruitment process.
“After investing so much effort, it feels like appearing for these exams is pointless,” she said. “The 2023 recruitment process left PhD holders feeling worthless.”
Israr said she once received a call for an interview for a teaching job in a college, only to be told, “Sorry, we can’t hire you—you are overqualified for this job.”
“I was stunned, not knowing how to respond,” she said. “It left me questioning the point of pursuing such a high degree when it only led to rejection.”
Regrets & Frustration
Israr said she often regrets her decision to do a PhD.
“Sometimes, it seems better to have a clerical job rather than a doctorate that offers no financial security.”
J*, a 28-year-old man from Srinagar who completed his MBA in 2022, shared similar frustrations and anger.
“People say an MBA guarantees job security, but in Kashmir, even this degree is worthless without connections or opportunities,” he said.
J, who has been dependent on his parents for the last two years while he applied for at least 12 jobs in public and private sector banks, said he plans to try gig work, such as delivering food and groceries or taking tuition.
“I have attended multiple interviews, only to be told the job is not of your standards and you are overqualified. In most places, I was told it’s a contract-based job, with no future security,” said J.
“If being educated makes us unemployable,” he said, “What’s the point of attempting excellence?”
*Identity hidden on request
(Rehan Qayoom Mir is a Kashmir-based independent journalist)
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