No Schools, No Electricity: A Kashmir Village That Gets 'Locked' Every Winter

Kashmir's Gagangir village gets cut off from the rest of the country for months during winters.

Basic facilities like schools, electricity, etc, still have not made it to this village, which has 1,200 residents.

(Photo: The Quint)

Video Editor: Rajbir Singh

Video Producer: Sufian Farooqui

English Script: Mamta, Naman Shah

"I really want to study, but because of heavy snowfall, we can't go to school," says young Rukhsana from Kashmir's Gagangir village, which gets cut off from the rest of the country for months during winters. Basic facilities like schools, electricity, etc, have still not made it to this village, which has 1,200 residents.

Gulam Hassan, a labourer from the village, said, "For three-four months of winters, we stock the essentials of livelihood like ration, tea, oil, etc."

An average family in Gagangir makes Rs 5,000 per month in a season. Seasonal earnings are hardly enough to survive the entire year.

"There are two earning members in our house. Income of one member is utilised in a season and second member's earnings are saved for winter," added Hassan.

Absence of Basic Facilities

The children of the village are deprived of educational facilities as Gagangir lacks schools.

Manjur Ahmed Chauhan, a student, said, "I have studied till class 8. In 2018, I dropped out of school because of the circumstances. No government bothers to pay attention to our village. There are no resources for us to study. Even today, our children are not able to attend school."

Access to medical facilities is also in deplorable state. "Four-five people clear the road for the patients, and then take them to hospital," said Hassan.

The primary source of the villagers' income is tourism. However, the poor infrastructure of the village becomes detrimental for tourism.

"This is a tourist place. Two companies are operating here. We have been asking for an ATM. We have to travel 12 km for ATM services, which becomes difficult in winter. There should be at least one ATM here, it’s a tourist area."

Badrudin, Sarpanch, Gagangir

Villagers allege authorities' ignorance and inaction for the backward condition of the village. "I am tired of requesting administration to visit here and see the condition of the poles and wires. There is no electricity. How will our children study? Government doesn't pay heed to our requirements," said Zulfikar, Panch, Gagangir.

Responding to the issues concerning Gagangir village, Block Development Officer Mohit Sharma said, "The terrain is very difficult. Delivering proper electricity poles, and pipelines is a difficult task and it will take some time. But we are working on it and I hope this area will become prosperous very soon and people will be able to live here properly throughout the year and lead a prosperous life."

The case of Gagangir is not a rare one. There are several other villages In Kashmir facing fundamental problems of electricity, education, and healthcare.