Valley unrest casts shadow over higher education in Ladakh

Arteev Sharma
Tribune News Service
Jammu, October 19

The unrest in Kashmir has cast a dark shadow over higher education in Ladakh as the enrolment in all five degree colleges of the region, affiliated with the University of Kashmir (KU), has dipped due to “delay in evaluation of answer sheets and declaration of results”.

Ironically, it takes Ladakhi students almost four and a half years to complete the three-year undergraduate degree programme because results are not being declared in time.

Consequently, academicians claim that Ladakhi students do not prefer to take admissions in degree colleges of the region, instead they go to Jammu, Chandigarh or Delhi.

Furthermore, the KU campuses in Kargil and Leh are not “administratively empowered” enough to resolve the issues of Ladakhi students.

This causes financial loss to them and wastes their time.

“The academic calendar of the KU does not suit the climatic conditions of the Ladakh region and many times students are forced to appear for exams in -20°C. Besides, the results are not declared in time which is causing a great academic loss to our students,” said Nasir Shabani, a senior professor in the commerce department at Government Degree College (GDC), Kargil.

As per the UGC guidelines, the results should be declared within 35 days of the last exam, but are delayed by almost five or six months in Ladakh, Shabani said. He said: “The enrolment of the GDC Kargil, which was the highest in Ladakh, has fallen. About three years ago, we had over 2,500 students which has now reduced to 1,400.”

Prof Deskyong Namgyal, principal, GDC, Leh, said, “Unfortunately, our students are paying for disturbance in Kashmir which is affecting their enrolment.”

The Chief Executive Councillor, Ladakh Autonomous Hill Development Council, Kargil, Feroz Ahmad Khan, recently met KU Vice Chancellor Prof Talat Ahmed and discussed issues being faced by Kargil students.