The Great Queue Trap

Every year, thousands of young Kashmiris wait endlessly for government jobs that may never come. It's not just a crisis of employment, it’s a collapse of dreams, dignity and direction.

- Peerzada Mohsin Shafi

In every town and village of Kashmir, there’s a line. It begins in coaching centres, winds through government offices, and ends somewhere between postponed exams and age limits. This line is filled with young, educated people—graduates, postgraduates, engineers—who spend the best years of their lives chasing one goal: a government job.

They're not lazy. They’re not aimless. They're doing exactly what they were told to do.

Since childhood, many Kashmiri youth grow up hearing that a “sarkari naukri” is the only path worth taking. Whether it’s as a schoolteacher, a constable, or an officer, government jobs are held up as the gold standard of success. Families pin their hopes, and often their savings, on that one dream. Entire lives are built around preparing for an exam that may never happen.

But how many actually make it?

In recent recruitment drives, the numbers tell a harsh story. For a hundred posts, ten thousand apply. In some cases, the ratio is even worse. Imagine working for years, attending classes, burning the midnight oil, and still not making it—not because you weren't good enough, but because the odds were never fair to begin with.