It has been almost a year since the valley is under lockdown. After the removal of Article 35A in the first week of August 2019, the valley was under complete lockdown. Now we all know that the widespread CoVid-19 (Corona Virus caused disease) added to this lockdown.
This Lockdown is not only causing the valley economic loss but more than that. The people have suffered more than we can imagine, our tourism, our students, everyone in the valley has suffered. People are paying for the services but are not getting even one-third of it- for example, we can take 4G internet. We pay for 4G and are getting 2G, which even does not touch 4G’s lowest speed.
Eight months after India revoked Kashmir’s semiautonomous status and brought the region fully under its authority, doctors here say a state of hopelessness has morphed into a severe psychological crisis. Mental health workers say Kashmir is witnessing an alarming increase in instances of depression, anxiety, and psychotic events.
Nearly 1.8 million Kashmiris, or nearly half of all adults, have some form of mental disorder, Doctors Without Borders estimated after surveying 5,600 households in 2015. Nine of 10 have experienced conflict-related traumas. The figures are much higher than in India, according to other surveys.
Let’s have a look at Nida Rehman’s case:
Before the August clampdown, Nida Rehman, 28, wanted to lift the spirits of others by setting up a non-profit organization to raise awareness for mental health issues. But she says she has failed to learn the lessons she gave to others.
In pictures, she looks happy. But the trauma has withered her. She has lost weight, her cheeks sunken, her eyes ringed by dark circles.
Last year, Ms. Rehman visited a psychiatrist, who diagnosed acute depression. She doesn’t sleep for days. She found some relief by spending hours with a caged parrot, Noor, that her family kept
“I felt I was living in a cage, like Noor,” Ms. Rehman said. “That happy world slipped out of my hands.”
After her relatives found her talking to the parrot, they grew worried and embarrassed, persuading her to release it. One evening, in October, Ms. Rehman set Noor free.
It didn’t help. Ms. Rehman is now taking regular doses of antidepressants.
In brief, we can say that due to the lockdowns we are facing, we have suffered a lot. Our people are now getting disturbed day after day. For the rest of the country, lockdown started when Prime Minister Narendra Modi on 24 March 2020 ordered a nationwide lockdown for 21 days.
But for the people of the valley, the lockdown started from 05 August 2020 following revocation of the special status of Jammu and Kashmir.
You can calculate the difference between the two dates. Don’t think of calculating the days, Calculate in months!
The information used to compile this article has been sourced from -- Google Search Engine, NYTimes, Wikipedia, Quartz India and Unsplash