Kashmir: Paradise on Earth?

The Mughal emperor Jahangir was so captivated by the beauty of the Kashmir Valley that he said "Gar firdaus, ruhe zamin ast, hamin asto, hamin asto, hamin asto" (if there is a paradise on the face of this earth, it is here, it is here, it is here)

Srinagar: First Impressions
Mighty Himalayan Ranges forking much above the clouds at 6500m -snow peaked, stretching far and wide form my window seat on my way to the airport, one of the smallest airport, photography strictly banned, military presence, Urdu signboards, Hijab clad girls,Pathan suited men, clean and well maintained roads, pine tree mountains, green manicured gardens, almost traffic and very less people to be seen(probably due to the Holy month of Ramadan), 32 deg C (that's 4 deg more than Mumbai when I left the airport in the morning!) and surprisingly high humidity. No internet connectivity on the phone and SMS banned on pre-paid cards due to security reasons.  

Story of Houseboats on Dal Lake

Rows of Houseboats lit at night on Dal Lake

Like many other Indian states (Nagaland, Sikkim) outsiders are not allowed to buy and own land in Jammu and Kashmir. Apparently, even the Britishers were not allowed to own the land (!!???) and hence they owned the water by building the houseboats and staying in them in Dal Lake. Later, even owning the water was banned. But the houseboats remained and the locals picked up on them and now its a pride legacy of the Kashmir Valley. Apparently there are more than 500 houseboats stationed in the lake - each with 4-6 bedroom and fully loaded amenities some even with ethnic or Mughal ambience!

Disillusioned Youth
Youth of Kashmir (Srinagar) do not find a bright future in the valley. They feel that Jammu and Kashmir is the most corrupt state in India, that politicians are least bothered about the people of the state. Lack of basic infrastructure and high levels of unemployment and the fact that there is no support or incentives for local business makes them dream of their achievable  Shangri-La: move to Delhi or Bangalore or any other Indian metro. A trend that has been there for quite some time now. They already have either their own brother or a relative who have moved there and are constantly in touch with them and probably are considering moving sometime soon. In fact many asked me "Delhi/Mumbai main naukri milega kya?": "Will I get a job in Delhi/Mumbai" (read do you have any contacts, can you pull some strings?)
Hey but wait, I was also told in the same breath that there are no poor people in the state: no one below the poverty line - probably an indication of a thriving black market. Apparently the rural areas have wide and good roads, "pukka houses" and flourishing farming. Paradoxes-a-plenty!

Cricket is more than a game
As with the rest of India, Cricket is less of a game and more of a religion in its own right in the Valley with the youth indulging in it on a daily basis. Sundays are dedicated to the matches. Again, the government doesn't seem to encourage or support organised matches. On the contrary, they have a ceiling of Rs.500 for a single ticket for a match. The rest of the money is pooled in by the youth itself. Of course, there's no prize 'money' but only a memento for the winner and nobody seem to complain. Apparently, in the rural district of Kupwara, there seem to be a huge ground dedicated for the sport, complete with proper pitch and mats, played with complete uniforms! Such is the passion (and coupled with the lack of other entertainment options) for the game that its not unusual for the youth to watch all five days of test matches when even the 20-20 format is vying to get enough eyeballs!

Hindu Vs Muslim
Majority of the population is Muslim(some peg it at 95%). Kashmiri Pandits seem to have migrated to Jammu or Delhi long ago due to the constant agitation and militancy in the region. However, there's absolute consensus that it has nothing to do with the local inhabitants or people at large but that its the handiwork of petty politicians as everywhere else. In fact the locals, whether Hindu or Muslim are just ordinary people trying to ear their livelihood sharing the same geography, food, language(Kashmiri), jokes, concerns and challenges. Clearly, the Hindu-Muslim divide exists only in the perverted minds of the short sighted politicians. Kashmiri Pandits originally hailed mostly from the Baramulla and Anantnag districts. Currently as a measure to reverse the migration and to provide relief measures, the government is providing them with assured government jobs, Rs.5500 per month per family in addition to free ration. According to locals only about 5% have returned back with family. Some work in Srinagar with the rest of the family away in Jammu or Delhi

Urdu Vs Kashmiri
Urdu is spoken by the Muslims and Kashmiri is spoken by both the Muslims and the Hindus. Kashmiri has also its own script and is taught at the schools. I was told that Kashmiri is spoken only in the Kashmir region. 

Kashmir Vital Stats

From 36-24-36 to 24-36-24, Sexy Babe to Ugly Woman, its definitely not an appealing transformation. In fact, its downright disgusting. The same is true with the current weather  pattern in the Valley. From snow peaked mountains during freezing winters to blooming green meadows during pleasant summers, woollen clothes used to be the only constant. But this year they had the hottest summer with mercury peaking at 36 deg C! - a sign of things to come. Previously, summers more than 30 deg C were unheard of. The effect of global warming is raising its ugly head and it wont be surprising to AC being adopted in homes and office in the near future! Yet, as they say there is always a silver lining underneath every dark cloud. In this case its still a relief to know that even a 10mins of rain brings about a significant dip in the mercury levels and you need to reach for your pullover. But how long will the line be silver? The writing on the wall is very clear!

I wonder what Jahangir would have said about Kashmir today.