Karnah is an administrative tehsil of the Kupwara district in Jammu and Kashmir, India. It has 42 villages and is away from the main town of Kupwara. Paharis form a majority population in the tehsil apart from Gujjars and Bakarwals. These Gujjars and Bakarwals are the nomadic people who migrate with their livestock depending upon the season, this is the main source of income for them.
The movement of these people starts mainly in the month of May when the snow has melted and the green pastures start showing up in the mountains. The upkeep of their temporary abodes known as ‘Dhoks’ begins and they also start looking for the suitable location for grazing their cattle, sheep and horses. Apart from grazing the main effort of these nomadic population is channelized towards saving them from the predators like leopard, bears etc. The making of protected enclosure and being on guard during night to ward off any danger becomes their main duty.
The population while migrating also takes the children along with them as there is no one to take care of them. Children accompanying the Gujjars and Bakarwals are visually vibrant towards their respective goals. They have been instrumental in uplifting the living standards and the society as a whole. The children carry books along with them to the places their parents migrate, where they do not even have a proper bed to sleep, this speaks volumes about the dedication and conviction of the youth in making a mark for themselves.
The people staying in these remote areas have always played a pivotal role in showcasing the real Kashmir. Inspite of their proximity to Line of Control and continuous disruption due to weather and cease fire violations the most prominent feature on display of this town is the development undertaken and the happiness of local residents. The government initiatives along with the connect between local people and security forces has ensured a paradigm shift in bringing the available opportunities to the doorsteps and further nourish the rich talent available in the Karnah bowl.
Improvement in infrastructure and development setup by leaps and bounds, after abrogation of Article 370, is furthering the hopes and beliefs of the locals that the vision of ‘Naya Kashmir’ is now slowly but surely turning into reality. The conditions of roads has improved even in this remotest of places connecting villages. This has infused an enthusiasm among the locals and especially among the aspiring youth. It’s not just the ease of commuting but the feeling of connect and belongingness with rest of the Union Territory and country that has been cultivated.
The sustained effort and investment in the education system of the bowl by the civil administration by opening Government schools and colleges as well as armed forces via Army Goodwill schools of Tithwal and Hajinar are attracting the Non-Government Organisations from other parts of the country to this remote tehsil. The aspirations of the youth is being realised and the same is visible in the results of last two years. Two name a few success stories there have been five selections in Indian Administrative Service and State Provincial Civil Service, four for MBBS, one for Stanford, numerous people into Armed Forces and the list just goes on and on. This is tremendous, considering it being the Western most region of the valley having a population of just around 70000 with extremely limited resources with numerous and unthinkable challenges, including the vagaries of extreme climate and mountainous terrain.
The improvement in communication with restoration of 4G network has also helped the people to connect with the outer world. It has opened new avenues for the youth who aspire to follow on the footsteps of the successful personalities of this region. The classes are now available at the doorstep, even to the children of the Bakarwals who used to miss out on important part of their education in the formative years. The classes for the competitive exams are now available, which are at par with the students hailing from other parts of the country. The government has also ensured uninterrupted power supply is available to Karnah by provisioning of a new power plant in Karnah.
Gone are the days when the students of Karnah had to rush to Srinagar for meaningful education. This was earlier only available to the people with a sound financial background due to the expenditure involved in Hostels, messing and tuition fees. With the aid from civil administration, the electricity and internet available in these areas, the underprivileged youth have got a fresh lease of life. The administration has also ensured the availability of competitive educational staff in these education institutes.
To increase the employment opportunities for the local people, the security forces have come forward, and in conjunction with the civil administration, have conducted seamless skill development programs. These skill development programs also include women centric ones like Arogya Sevika, thereby empowering women towards their goals and enabling them to take care of their household, apart from meeting their aspirations of becoming a doctor/ nurse.
The employment avenues have definitely grown throughout the valley after the abrogation of Article 370, with the government introducing new infrastructural and development projects, getting the youth of Kashmir at par with the rest and making up for the time lost by them due to Pakistan’s false narrative creating unrest in the valley by coming up
with schemes like Deen Dayal Upadhyay Gramin Kaushal Yojna in which 1.24 lakh local youth of the valley are being trained in job intensive vocational courses and the citizens of Karnah were not the people who would let this opportunity slip. Opportunities have been grasped with both hands exponentially increasing the employment rate in this remote bowl. Another similar scheme Udaan, has given a boost in corporate experience to the locals greatly enriching their skills and increasing the talent pool available in the valley.
Though everything is still not tickety-boo. The Pakistan sponsored drug menace still persists as plague and there are some black sheep’s, who are involved in furthering the Pakistan’s false narrative by smuggling arms, ammunition and narcotics to hinterland by luring youth with money and drugs. However, the brighter side is that the youth is walking shoulder to shoulder with the civil administration in curbing these menaces from the bowl which can be easily gauged by the increasing footfall in every Anti-drug campaign. The people of Karnah have understood the nefarious designs of our neighbour and are giving every possible support to thwart their evil designs. The local people, civil administration and the security forces are working in consonance to ensure that Karnah stands strong for progress, development and various success stories that this remote Western corner of Kashmir has achieved.
