By Miyan Mohammad Arif

As an advocate, I watch young people stream through our corridors daily. They come clutching files for business registrations, partnership deeds, startup paperwork, trade licenses, GST filings, and commercial agreements. 

Their presence tells a larger story about how Kashmir’s educated youth now approach their futures.

Every year thousands of graduates leave our schools, colleges, universities, and professional institutes eager to launch stable careers. But the difference between their numbers and available positions grows wider. 

Families once poured savings into education expecting government service to deliver income, respect, and security. That path has narrowed. 

A single recruitment notice now draws lakhs of applicants for a few hundred posts. Candidates spend years in coaching centres and examination halls only to age out while waiting. 

The resulting strain touches entire households.

Young men and women remain dependent on parents long after completing degrees. Financial pressure builds in homes already stretched thin. Confidence erodes, while social frustration rises. 

This situation reaches beyond household budgets into the emotional fabric of families.

Kashmir’s economy leans heavily on traditional pillars: horticulture, agriculture, handicrafts, tourism, and small trade. Other parts of India host thriving industries, manufacturing hubs, information technology firms, and corporate offices that absorb educated workers. Here those avenues stay........

© Kashmir Observer