Leaving flood memories behind, students have varied vacation plans

Some want to study at home, others eager to tour places

Leaving their flood memories behind, students in the Valley this year have varied plans to spend their winter vacations. Some want to make up for the academic losses while others are eager to visit different places with their families.
Though many are planning to catch up for the academic losses in the two-month winter break, Fatima Bhat (15) wants to spend the vacations in warm places of the country and spent time with her family in holidays.
“Last winter, Kashmir was disturbed and so, we could not plan annual holidays. This year, I want to go to Mumbai with my family and enjoy some days there. There are so many places of fun in Mumbai and the weather is good,” said Fatima, a class IX student.
After floods hit the Kashmir valley last year, the education sector faced a setback with losses to infrastructure worth nearly Rs 165 crore.
As most of the schools and colleges were damaged, exams were delayed by more than six months, affecting the psyche of students who faced losses on the academic front.
Mehreen Jabeen, who recently passed her class IX exams, was disturbed last winter as her home and education suffered due to the floods.
A resident of Raj Bagh, Mehreen was not satisfied with the performance this year due to delay in the annual academic calendar. She planned to study hard in the two-month winter vacations.
“Last year, everything was devastated and we were not in a position to concentrate. I tried to give my best, but due to paucity of time and delay in exams, I could not do well. But now, my eyes are set on the winter months. I want to prepare well for class X and make up for the losses I faced last year,” she said.
The education of students faced multiple challenges in the last 14 months, one being continuous political disturbances in October and the first week of this month.
The restrictions imposed by the government to prevent law and order problems forced the authorities to postpone exams nearly eight times in two weeks.
The frequent delay in exams and loss of regular classes was another challenge for students as they wanted to do self-study in the winter months to prepare themselves for competitive exams.
“Almost every Friday, there are restrictions in the old city, which prevent us from attending school or going for tuitions. There is a lot of disturbance and we lose classes continuously due to one reason or the other. The delay in exams affects preparations. For me, winter is a challenge and I have to make best use of it so that I can do well in competitive exams,” said Insha Saleem, a class XI science student.