Educated youth struggle for dignified employment as questions grow over low salaries, private-sector accountability, and government employment policies.
By Parvaiz Ahmad Tantray
Kashmir is facing a painful contradiction. Thousands of youth pursue higher education with the hope of building a secure future, while their families sacrifice their savings and comforts to support their ambitions. Yet, for many, the journey from education to employment has become a prolonged struggle marked by uncertainty, disappointment, and financial hardship.
Across the Valley, graduates and postgraduates continue searching for jobs. Some spend years preparing for competitive examinations, while others submit applications to the private sector. Despite their qualifications and willingness to work, many struggle to find employment that offers financial independence and professional dignity. This raises an important question: What is the value of education if young people cannot find a fair opportunity to use their knowledge and skills? Unemployment is not merely an economic statistic. It affects families, weakens confidence, delays independence, and raises serious questions about the effectiveness of our education and employment systems.
THE SACRIFICES OF PARENTS AND THE STRUGGLES OF THEIR CHILDREN
Behind every educated unemployed young person is often a family that has made enormous sacrifices. Consider a father who works tirelessly to educate his children, postponing his own needs and spending years of savings on school fees, books, transportation, and higher education. His dream is simple: that one day his child will secure a respectable job, contribute to household expenses, and provide the family with a more secure future. He does not necessarily dream of wealth or luxury; he hopes for dignity, stability, and relief from financial uncertainty.
But when that child completes a degree and spends years searching for employment without success, disappointment spreads throughout the household. Parents begin worrying about their children’s future, while young people struggle with the pressure of meeting family expectations. Was educating a child a mistake? Was dreaming of a better future unreasonable? Certainly, a degree cannot guarantee every individual a job. However, when educated young people repeatedly struggle to find suitable employment, the responsibility cannot be placed entirely on them. Policymakers, educational institutions, and employers must examine whether the opportunities available are sufficient, accessible, and aligned with the needs of the workforce. Education should open doors to opportunity, not leave families questioning whether their sacrifices will ever bear fruit.
A DEGREE IN HAND, BUT A SALARY OF JUST 5,000?
One concern frequently raised by job seekers is the low compensation reportedly offered for certain private-sector positions. After exhausting their hopes of securing government employment, many young people turn to private establishments. They carry their CVs from office to office, attend interviews, and accept positions in the hope of gaining experience and becoming financially independent. Yet some report being offered salaries as low as 5,000 a month. How can a young person reasonably manage transportation, food, personal expenses, and household responsibilities on such an income, particularly when the job requires full-time attendance and substantial duties?
Not every position requires the same qualifications, and salaries naturally vary according to experience, responsibilities, and working hours. A degree alone does not automatically determine the value of every job. However, compensation must be assessed fairly and in accordance with applicable wage laws. Where workers are required to work long hours and undertake significant responsibilities, extremely low salaries deserve serious scrutiny. The concern is not simply that an employer offers a low salary; it is whether the employment arrangement is fair, lawful, and proportionate to the work expected. Employment should provide a pathway toward financial independence, not leave a person working throughout the month while remaining unable to meet basic needs.
PRIVATE-SECTOR GROWTH MUST NOT COME AT THE COST OF WORKERS’ RIGHTS
The private sector is essential to Kashmir’s economic development. Hospitals, educational institutions, businesses, tourism enterprises, and other industries can create employment and reduce dependence on government recruitment. However, employment generation must go hand in hand with responsibility. Workers should receive clear information about their salaries, duties, working hours, leave arrangements, and other applicable conditions. Unreasonable working hours, inadequate compensation, humiliating treatment, and disregard for legitimate workplace rights must not be accepted as unavoidable consequences of unemployment.
A particularly worrying issue is the fear many employees experience when considering whether to raise a complaint. Some remain silent because they believe their employer can easily replace them with another unemployed candidate. Such circumstances create an imbalance in which workers may feel compelled to accept conditions they would otherwise challenge. Employers also face genuine financial pressures, particularly when operating small businesses, and these challenges deserve recognition. Nevertheless, business difficulties should not become an excuse for disregarding workers’ legal rights. Offering someone a job is not charity; it is a professional relationship based on work, compensation, responsibilities, and mutual respect. Kashmir needs a stronger private sector, but it also needs workplaces where employees are treated fairly and employers understand that responsible employment contributes to sustainable economic growth.
GOVERNMENT MUST DELIVER RESULTS, NOT JUST ASSURANCES
The government has a critical role in addressing unemployment, but that responsibility extends beyond announcing vacancies and introducing employment schemes. Young people want to know how many sustainable jobs are being created, how recruitment delays are being addressed, how private investment is being encouraged, and whether existing employment programmes are delivering meaningful results. Government jobs remain an important aspiration, but they cannot be the sole answer to the employment needs of an entire generation.
When thousands of candidates compete for limited vacancies, many spend years preparing for examinations, sometimes postponing alternative careers. Transparent recruitment, timely processes, and clear communication are therefore essential. At the same time, policymakers must strengthen opportunities outside government service by supporting small businesses, encouraging investment, improving vocational training, and connecting job seekers with employers. Employment schemes should be assessed not merely by the number of registrations, applications, or training certificates issued, but by the actual opportunities they generate. How many people find sustainable employment? How many businesses receive support and successfully expand? Are young people gaining meaningful work experience and better incomes? These are the questions that matter. Public representatives and government departments must be prepared to answer them with evidence and measurable outcomes.
VIP CULTURE AND THE PRIORITIES OF GOVERNANCE
When ordinary families struggle to educate their children and secure employment for them, questions about public priorities naturally arise. Citizens expect public institutions to function efficiently, public resources to be used responsibly, and the concerns of ordinary people to receive serious attention. The debate about VIP culture should not be reduced to appearances or personal lifestyles. It should encourage a wider discussion about accountability, the allocation of resources, and the practical results of governance.
The unemployed graduate seeking an opportunity deserves the same seriousness of attention as any other public concern. The government should focus on expanding employment opportunities, supporting viable enterprises, improving access to career guidance, and ensuring that workers understand their rights. Good governance is measured not merely by announcements and official activity, but by tangible improvements in the everyday lives of ordinary citizens.
EDUCATION, SKILLS, AND OPPORTUNITY MUST GO TOGETHER
Educational institutions must also examine how effectively they prepare students for employment. Academic qualifications remain important, but employers may also require practical experience, communication skills, computer proficiency, and specialised training. Stronger links between educational institutions and industry, effective career counselling, relevant internships, and practical training can help young people navigate the job market.
However, unemployment cannot be solved simply by asking every graduate to acquire another certificate. Skills training is valuable only when it responds to real employment needs and improves access to suitable opportunities. Young people must take responsibility for developing their abilities, but they cannot be expected to solve a structural employment crisis through individual effort alone. The government must create an enabling economic environment, educational institutions must prepare students effectively, and employers must recognise and reward the contributions of their workforce. Each has a responsibility to fulfil.
KASHMIR’S YOUTH DESERVE DIGNITY, NOT SYMPATHY ALONE
The young people of Kashmir are not asking for charity or a life without challenges. They want fair opportunities, transparent recruitment, lawful wages, and workplaces where their dignity is respected. They want their education and skills to provide a realistic chance of becoming financially independent. They want to contribute to their families and society without being trapped between unemployment and exploitative working conditions.
Addressing this challenge will require sustained cooperation between government departments, private employers, educational institutions, and the wider community. The time has come to treat unemployment as more than a recurring subject of public discussion. It must become a measurable priority supported by practical action, institutional accountability, and a commitment to fair employment. Ultimately, Kashmir must confront a fundamental question:
Do we want a future in which educated young people continue moving from one closed door to another, accepting hardship because they have no alternative, or a future in which education, skills, and honest work genuinely open the doors to dignity and independence?
A degree should represent possibility, not prolonged disappointment. Employment should provide a foundation for a better life, not merely an opportunity to survive from one month to the next. The future of Kashmir is inseparable from the future of its young people. Their aspirations deserve more than promises, their work deserves fair recognition, and their concerns deserve a serious response.
Kashmir’s youth do not need sympathy. They need opportunities, accountability, and a fair chance to build the future they have worked so hard to achieve.
