The Exam That Broke Us

Thousands of young aspirants in Jammu and Kashmir invested years of sacrifice into a promise of fairness. One leaked exam turned hope into heartbreak.

- Navaid Runyal

I spent the last year living in a bubble, cut off from the world, my life orbiting a single goal: clearing the JKSSB JE Electrical exam.

I left a job I tolerated, with low pay and endless work, to chase a promise that felt almost sacred. Friends said I was mad to resign, but I had made a pact with myself: give everything, expect nothing less than success.

My days began before sunrise. I poured over textbooks, scribbled notes, solved problems until my hands cramped, and fell asleep only to wake and repeat the cycle.

Festivals passed outside my door. Family weddings happened without me. Even when my body begged for rest, I reminded myself why I did this: my father, who tills the land from dawn to dusk, and my family, whose struggles I hoped to ease.

Every page, calculation, and sleepless night carried the weight of a dream not just mine, but theirs too.

When the exam notification finally arrived, relief and pride filled me at once. I pictured my parents' beaming faces, as if saying, "Your sacrifice was worth it."