Writter: Rajesh koul
One is fortunate enough to get a chance to serve in the valley and a very few people get a chance to do the same in initial years being in the services. We always relate the state of Jammu & Kashmir (now a Union Territory) with militancy, insurgency, unrest and conflict with Pakistan but we forget that the valley of Kashmir has way more to offer if looked closely. With varied and diversified geographical, agricultural, climatic and topographic features, it is a beautiful yet isolated haven, isolated from development, peace and growth. The valley needs a sustainable solution to strengthen its economic base which can only come from growth at the grass root level. At a time when industrial development of Kashmir is being touted as a means to provide a much needed boost to the local economy, there is much more un-utilised potential within the local artisans, farmers and the youth. After talking to the local AWAM of different social strata, I realised that the youth in Kashmir amidst all the challenges, displays entrepreneurial zeal to take strides towards progress. However for entrepreneurs to successfully contribute towards the society, they need vital resources such as funding, mentoring, human capital, sustainable infrastructure and supportive government policies. Unfortunately the youth is dealing with a lack of unfavourable circumstances. Due to which the growth of Kashmir has been erratic for the past few years.
The tourism sector in J&K has a lot more potential than being exploited currently. Tourism also caters to allied sectors like handicrafts, handlooms and transport. Despite the valleys unique culture and rich heritage, the tourism sector accounts only for 7% of states GDP. Many poets have called the valley of Kashmir Heaven on Earth”, but if you search for it on Google, the valley is not even listed among the top ten domestic destinations in the country for tourism.
The erratic growth of Kashmir is always attributed to the armed militancy in the valley but the economy is also marked by challenges like low productivity in agriculture and allied sectors that in turn affect employment generation and growth of per capita income, hinting at the Lack of a well-defined strategy, good governance and sound fiscal management. To top it off, the literacy rate in the valley is less than 70%. Youth unemployment is another challenge being faced by Kashmiris.
Need Of The Hour
J&K has massive potential to benefit from various industries including agriculture, tourism, apparel and handicrafts. The Kashmir Box a Kashmir based online market place which sells a variety of kashmiri products like pashmina, woollens, ponchos, wazwan, shilajit and the Kashmiri GI tag handicrafts to national and international consumers is raising a considerable amount of funding. It claims to have brought together a huge number of artisans and farmers, approximately 200 producers and over 50 local brands on a single platform. It further claims to serve over 50,000 clients in almost forty countries. The idea behind initiatives of this kind is to take entrepreneurship beyond urban areas and incubate start-ups and small businesses in rural areas as well. The need of the hour is to give a nudge to the micro, small and medium industries and start-ups. We can also bank upon cooperative societies. The youth in the area needs to be encouraged to identify the local problems and address them by using the concepts of frugal innovation, ultimately developing technology based solutions and working prototypes.
While creating a supportive framework for entrepreneurship, it is important to cultivate a start-up based eco system and is equally vital to pay close attention towards the development of the skill of the youth. The government seems to have taken some steps in this direction. For example the designated J&K entrepreneurship development institute acts as a nodal agency for the implementation of start-up policy and helps the youth go up on the curve of skill development. It is training the aspiring youth with entrepreneurship program in the districts of Pampore, Kargil, Pulwama, Jammu, Kupwara and Badibramhpur.
As I look around I see an insane amount of potential which the valley has to enhance its livelihood and improve its standard of living. It is also known for sericulture, cold water fisheries, wood work, cricket bats, saffron, handicrafts and horticulture produce. There is a need to establish producer companies and allow them to expand and empower them to enable storage, quality control, sorting and packing. Along with this the establishment of a cold chain from the valley to the national and international markets for the food and horticulture products would prove to be fruitful. Another idea that can boost the horticulture industry is the Introduction of computerised data dissemination facility and putting up websites for promotion of horticulture marketing. Also exhibitions in the metro cities of the country and in other major markets including promotional events like Agro Tech will provide a good platform to the agriculturists in the valley.
Conclusion
The Kashmir valley relies entirely upon state and union funds, generating no resources of its own. The hostile environment in the valley has severely discouraged private investments and enterprises. By necessity, successful development projects require funding and coordination from our government programs. Closed corner location, remoteness and isolation from major markets, scattered population and lack of infrastructure and dislocation of normal civil life in the past three decades are some factors that define special developmental challenges. The valley should strive to grab these opportunities by overcoming their problems with a view to make itself competitive in the global market.
