To the girl who hides her tears behind her textbooks, 

To the boy who walks slower past that classroom, 

To the child who wonders if it’s worth speaking at all 

Know this: YOU MATTER. 

Your pain is real. Your story deserves to be heard. 

And the world is not silent anymore. This is for you. 

There is something revered about the sight of a child walking into school, optimism in her eyes, dreams in her bag, innocence in her heart and joy in her voice. A school is preordained to be her subsequent home, a space of progress, happiness, and discovery.

But in the secluded corners of whiteboards and school benches, behind seemingly disciplined surroundings and ‘reputable’ uniforms, there often lurks a silence far more perilous than noise.

This silence of bright, young minds that hide horror behind forced smiles, disgrace behind fake excuses, and suffering behind top grades.

Under the layers of moral guardianship, it is the silence of abuse, often verbal, physical, sexual, psychological, and emotional. The perpetrator is not always a stranger, not always a shadow in the backstreet.

Sometimes, it’s a teacher with a kind face, a mentor with a soft voice, a counselor with great help or a parent full of affection. Sometimes, it’s the silence of those who watch and say nothing. These dismissed, cancelled and suppressed experiences leave lasting scars.

In the blessed corridors of learning, one would expect a setting of safety, affection, encouragement, and care. Yet there occurs a frightening and mainly unspoken epidemic, the manipulation, abuse and harassment of children by those trusted with their well-being and edification.

Two recent incidents; one in a girls’ school in Bhadarwah, another involving a brave young girl’s FB post who chose to break years of silence, reflect the disturbing reality of the same school, exposed. These are not exceptions.

These are indicators of a profound systemic neglect, where authority is left unchecked and children are left unprotected. They signify a design entrenched in power misused and structures that often fail to........

© Greater Kashmir