Ayoub Javid
Priority shifts in human society to meet developing trends are natural, but preserving the resources essential for our core survival must always remain a non-negotiable precondition.
There was a time when deplorable financial conditions forced earlier generations to migrate to Punjab and Delhi, earning their livelihood through gruellinglabour like pulling cycle rickshaws or working as coolies. Back then, daily needs were minimal and inexpensive. Today, we live in an era of rapid economic growth and affluence, where household and personal demands have skyrocketed. Yet, this prosperity has brought a strange paradox: our youth are increasingly unwilling to undertake hard labour, forcing us to import manpower from other states.
Luxuries like smartphones, frequent dining out, and the rising energy costs of vehicles purchased on interest-bearing bank loans have become heavy burdens on daily life. This so-called prosperity has blighted our society, making it deeply dependent. The easy flow of pocket money given to youngsters by well-meaning parents has loosened parental grip, failing to teach the younger generation the importance of financial discipline. Meanwhile, unemployment remains a bitter reality, but too many youths have tied their futures exclusively to the shrinking prospects of government jobs, waiting until they cross the age limit.
The Death of Ancestral Trades
Recently, a social media post by a local resident, Mohammad Jamal, highlighted a stark reality: this past Eid-ul-Adha, a local householder had to hire a non-local labourer just to slaughter his sacrificial animal.
Time is witness to the fact that before the 1990s, children of the working class viz cobblers, butchers, carpenters, weavers, peasants, and barberswere trained in their ancestral occupations from childhood. Today, the new generation overwhelmingly rejects these family professions, rendering our society dependent on outside expertise.
In doing so, our youth are missing a golden opportunity to leverage lucrative government flagship schemes designed to modernize family trades. Programs like the “Prime Minister’s Employment Generation Programme (PMEGP)” offer up to a “35% subsidy on loans” to boost self-reliance. Similarly, Entrepreneurship Development Institutes (EDIs) exist to guide youth in setting up manufacturing or service units, while the agriculture and horticulture departments offer numerous schemes to boost crop production. Unfortunately, a widespread lack of interest has left these resources virtually untouched.
From Green Fields to Concrete Forests
Until the recent past, our rural population produced a massive surplus of paddy, which the government purchased to supply urban areas. Today, sky-touching concrete complexes built on agricultural land have decimated rice production, and our vegetable sector is no exception.
Our womenfolk, who were once actively engaged in cultivating and harvesting backyard vegetables, are now seen waiting in lanes and by lanes for mobile vans to deliver basic staples like potatoes, onions, tomatoes, and pumpkins. Buying rice, mutton, and milk from the open market has become the norm because we have converted our fertile greenery into concrete forests.
The Environmental Toll
This shift has severely degraded Kashmir’s natural environment. Local wetlands have vanished, causing species like ducks, swans, frogs, and quails to lose their water roosts. Even iconic flowers like the rose, sunflower, lily, and jasmine have grown rare. Furthermore, a sedentary work culture has replaced physical activity, giving rise to a host of lifestyle ailments across the population.
Rethinking the Apple Monoculture
While the widespread cultivation of apples has undoubtedly raised the standard of living in our villages, it comes with high volatility. Every year, nearly “20% of the farming population” suffers heavy losses due to sudden market price drops, climate catastrophes, and exploitation by middlemen.
True economic progress cannot ignore the need for alternative planning. Cultivating land without foresight means ignoring potential risks. Fortunately, some forward-thinking farmers are showing the way forward. Farooq Ahmad of Tahab, Pulwama isutilising sharp foresight,shifted his focus from a traditional orchard to high-yield vegetable cultivation. By erecting a greenhouse under an agriculture development programme, he now harvests diverse vegetables on a monthly and quarterly basis, even through the harsh winter. His instant-sale model has attracted a steady stream of customers, including local hoteliers.
Another one, Aijaz Ahmad of Batnoor Pulwama, guided by CSIR-IIIM, utilised the empty spaces within his orchard to cultivate lavender. This parallel farming strategy effectively doubled his income from the exact same acreage of land.
Agricultural and horticultural experts agree that adopting parallel ideas like those of Farooq and Aijaz is imperative if our farming population wants to mitigate financial risk. Similarly, the trend of raising massive commercial concrete complexes has benefited only a small faction of people; many owners now struggle to find tenants in a saturated market. The time has come to align our resources with actual domestic and market demands. The wealth is there; we simply need the wisdom to invest it back into the soil that sustains us.
