Catching Them Young

A government school in Kashmir demonstrates how emotional care, moral guidance, and active teaching can steer adolescents toward safe paths.

- Muntashir Kifayat Hussain

When I drove to Batapora in Magam for an academic monitoring visit, I expected registers and routine checks. Instead, I found a government high school working as a lifeline for teenagers.

The school sits in the middle of the village, modest but alive with purpose. Morning assembly set the tone: rows of students in bright orange uniforms stood in careful lines, voices rising together in prayer. Their neatness showed a culture of care built into every part of the day.

Soon after, the assembly broke into smaller circles. In one corner, a female teacher spoke with a group of girls aged fourteen to sixteen. The topic was adolescence: mood swings, anxiety, depression, fatigue, and the confusion of sudden change. She explained how to manage emotions, find support and keep balance.

Twenty minutes of each school day are reserved for these conversations. In most Kashmiri schools, such talks are rare. Here they are routine.