Kashmir's Urban Health Crisis Has Arrived

The signs are everywhere: diabetes in the young, sleepless nights, rising temperatures, and stress.

- Dr. Raies Ahmad

There was a time when moving to the city meant you had made it.

City life in Kashmir once held the promise of modernity: better jobs, quicker access to services, and brighter futures for children.

For many families from remote districts, settling in towns like Srinagar, Anantnag, Baramulla, or Sopore was a symbol of upward mobility.

Today, that promise feels more like a pressure.

The charm is fading under layers of smog, concrete, and chronic stress. Our cities, though full of ambition, are now draining us.

Urban stress - the unseen weight of noise, pollution, overcrowding, and social disconnection - is no longer a theory. It’s a growing health crisis.

In Srinagar, the city where I serve as a public health officer, the signs are clear.

PM2.5 levels, those fine inhalable particles that settle deep into our lungs, often exceed the safety limits defined by the World Health Organization.

In peak winter, when people burn wood and trash for heat, the air becomes dense and dangerous. According to the Jammu and Kashmir Pollution Control Committee’s 2022 report, several localities in Srinagar recorded winter air pollution at nearly 200 micrograms per cubic meter, four times the safe threshold.

This bad air worsens respiratory issues.

In my clinic, I see a steady rise in cases of childhood asthma, chronic bronchitis, and sinusitis, especially during winter inversion days, when pollutants get trapped close to the ground.

Patients from high-density neighbourhoods like Batamaloo, Nowhatta, and Qamarwari often come in with recurring throat and chest infections.

Noise, too, is a daily invader. From early morning construction drills to late-night traffic snarls, our cities hum at a pitch that leaves no room for rest.

In a 2023 health behaviour survey across Srinagar, Pulwama, and Ganderbal, nearly 6 in 10 respondents reported difficulty sleeping due to city noise.