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The joy of youth dimmed by conflict

Ittifaaq, a social organisation, recently held a programme for pellet victims in Srinagar.

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Affan Yesvi

Ittifaaq, a social organisation, recently held a programme for pellet victims in Srinagar. The name of the show was ‘Beadaarr’, meaning ‘awake, wakeful, vigilant’. The theme: Let’s talk mental health for pellet victims. Invitees were requested to contribute for the welfare of the victims, with a minimum contribution of Rs 100. It was the collective responsibility of society to care for the victims. ‘It is time to work on their psychological well-being and show them the world that we want to see,’ said the invitation card. 

Counsellors at the show encouraged young boys and girls to rebuild their lives, assuring them of support in whatever they wanted to achieve. Many victims had lost their vision. About 40 victims had come for the show, attended by a hundred-odd people. Some local bands of youngsters were scheduled to perform at the event; among them a Class VIII student, who left the audience spellbound with the richness in his voice, and his Kashmiri and Urdu songs. 

But the atmosphere soon became somber. The victims got up from their seats in the front row, and asked permission to leave. They were feeling pained, they said, and wanted to go home.

The youngsters scheduled to perform at the event were disappointed. Most of them were self-taught musicians. But they empathised with the pain of the victims, condemned to live in a world of darkness and suffering. I saw the pain on their faces. The physical pain, and also the psychological impact at being deprived of the joy of youth. I saw both empathy and disappointment on the faces of the young Kashmiris who had looked forward to performing for their less-fortunate brothers and sisters, and bringing them some happiness. 

I was struck by the pain of Kashmir: the joy of youth dimmed by the darkness of conflict. The victimhood of some is evident, like that of pellet victims. Their pain and suffering is inescapable.

But the suffering of a whole generation of children is going unnoticed. Nobody is aware of their victimhood. The youngsters who had come to perform have grown up through hardship and distress. Many of them have seen the trauma of conflict from close quarters. Living through this stressful environment, they have lost the exuberance of childhood far too early. And yet, they have to wrap up this disappointment within themselves, and trudge on.

Ittifaaq had made a humble attempt to reach out to the victims and understand their pain. It was touching that even from this small gathering of mainly youngsters, a total collection of Rs 11,000 was made for the welfare of the victims.

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