‘We must modify our thinking or risk succumbing to another type of sadness known as job search depression’
According to the World Health Organisation, depressive disorders are the fourth leading health problem in the world. Major depressive disorder is expected to be the world’s second most debilitating disease in 2020. Depression is a major health problem that can afflict people of all ages, including adults and educated unemployed youngsters.
According to the Center For Monitoring Indian Economy (CMIE), 46% of the Jammu and Kashmir workforce was unemployed- the second highest in the country.
Senior psychiatrist Dr Arsheed states that Kashmir has already faced a lot from decades of turmoil, now this unemployment and diminishing job avenues can ruin our youngster’s life. Quoting the cases of mental health issues, he is receiving on a daily basis, he said unemployed has been a major cause of anxiety among youth in the valley.
Numerous issues stem from unemployment. It can have a negative impact on a community’s economic, social, and emotional well-being in addition to just an individual. Numerous issues have an explicit or implicit connection to unemployment. They also cause family conflict, alienation, humiliation, stigma, stress, despair, and even suicide. They are not just confined to extreme financial difficulties or debt. It’s time for us to get together and fight for greater job possibilities.
Depression is a global mental health condition that affects people to varied degrees in different regions. Greece, Spain, Portugal, Palestine, and Tunisia are among the most depressed nations.
Since we can see that many young people are depressed in this day and age, the cause of depression is not specific; it can develop as a result of a range of medical, social, moral, and economic illnesses, but one of the most common causes is unemployment. When you have worked hard and obtained a better qualification in order to obtain any suitable employment.
However, despite your efforts, you fall short and become dissatisfied. Since I am not a physiologist, I cannot speculate on the causes of sadness and anxiety, but I can state that educated children have been subjected to great stress. They were already dealing with awful unemployment, and economic, social, and cultural issues, and the way government job recruiting agencies are playing with their emotions has surely added to the stress of degree holders and qualified kids.
Indeed, qualified and degree-holding millennials are not afraid of taking competitive tests, and they are ready and have almost prepared themselves for such competitions, but they are sceptical of the exam’s authenticity. It has been well recognised that during the last several years, the problem of unemployment among qualified and degree-holding adolescents has been exceedingly large, and the youths are facing this difficulty more than ever before. However, now that the credibility of reputable recruiting organisations has been compromised and the government has taken note, qualified youth preparing for competitive tests have been disappointed. They are not bothered about the competition, but they are concerned about their own worth.
In actuality, skilled youths have been leading stressful lives as a result of these unfavourable circumstances. Their future is something they are particularly worried about. Their concerns are valid, to be sure, but life has much more to offer than just employment in terms of joy and satisfaction. Think of your life as a game that you may enjoy through winning. If you have put up a lot of effort but have not been successful in landing the desired job. It is the fault of the system you have been living in, not you. You won’t ever feel as though your quest for survival is over. Without a doubt, No. Remember that every difficulty is followed by relief. Simply said, if you fight for your job in life, you will succeed in reaching your goals at some point. Do not, however, live in your dreams; instead, be realistic in your efforts; trust in God; and never experience disappointment.
A rise in emotional or mental health issues such as despair and anxiety is reported by 56% of unemployed persons, citing a 2021 Pew Research Centre survey.
Speaking about the upward trend of unemployment in the UT, a senior bureaucrat explained: “The unemployment crisis in Jammu and Kashmir is largely due to the retrenchment of employees, mergers of government departments, and slacked recruitment process.”
Due to continuing conflict in Kashmir during the last 18 years, there has been a phenomenal increase in psychiatric morbidity. The results reveal that the prevalence of depression is 55.72%. The prevalence is highest (66.67%) in the 15 to 25 years age group, followed by 65.33% in the 26 to 35 years age group.
Without a stable income, people may have difficulty meeting their basic needs, such as food, housing, and healthcare. This can lead to a cycle of financial instability and worsen mental health problems, such as depression.
In the study, someone revealed that the rate of depression is higher in rural areas than in urban areas, and especially much higher among rural females.
Suicides in Kashmir are rising at alarming rates. Even the cement bridge in the Noor Bagh area of Srinagar has become a notorious point for suicide by drowning. Locals call this bridge the Suicide Bridge. Frustration is the main reason for suicide here. According to the Centre for Monitoring Indian Economy (CMIE), J&K has a 22.2 percent unemployment rate, which is much higher than the national level unemployment rate of 7.1 percent. Due to very little industrial development here, the young minds are wholly and solely dependent on government jobs and the gap between the vacancies available and the job demand cannot be filled by the administration here. Thus, the question of how to earn bread and milk puts great strain on the minds of Kashmiri youth and they become more vulnerable to suicide. Depression and anxiety also gave birth to drug addiction in Kashmir.
According to a survey by the United Nations Drug Control Programme (UNDCP), there are 4,000 female drug abusers among the estimated 70,000 drug users in Kashmir. It is crucial to note that Kashmir’s rate of drug addiction among students, both male and female, is constantly rising. Drugs do not, in fact, help people overcome pain or suffering, but many young people use them as a quick fix for stress.
The deep-seated political instability, unemployment, and lack of development in the area, as well as other social and geographic issues, are to blame for the hellish levels of depression and anxiety that Kashmiris are experiencing. To alleviate the suffering of the people of Kashmir, it is urgent for both ordinary people and think tanks to step forward.
Numerous issues plague our culture, including dowry, moral decline, and unemployment. These issues affect not only our civilisation but the entire world. One of these is the threat of unemployment, which poses a significant economic challenge. The number of educated kids who are unemployed is growing like a weed, yet there are few opportunities to help them. Young people worry about their future.
Many of the thousands of young people who are unemployed in Kashmir are on the edge of exceeding the age requirement for employment. Youth with the greatest degrees are unemployed, however, some do work in the private sector or on a contract basis in various government departments for pitiful pay. In an inflationary environment, they are unable to generate enough money to cover their requirements.
Everyone aspires to have at least one reputable job, thus failing to land one damages a person. It leaves a void in the sufferer’s life. Seeing one’s dreams die is the most terrible thing a person can experience. Every student studies with the hope that it will help him earn a respectable living and a position so he can support his family and become financially independent. Having a work satisfies psychological as well as financial needs. It increases the joy of having self-worth, dignity, and mental health.
However, being unable to do so pinches a person every day. It causes a variety of issues, such as financial difficulty and psychological stress.
After schooling and completing higher studies, we are officially out of the studying system. Schools and colleges are places that provide us with a sense of direction and purpose in life. After getting your education doing degrees and all. We search for jobs as everyone is in need of a job whether government or private, but due to the non-availability of jobs most of the degree holders undergo depression. In fact, this is not the end of life, and one should not lose hope and courage, one should think that depression is not the solution as we are seeing today that many people are going through depression and some are even fallen prey to drugs but this is not any solution, It brings more pain and worries to your entire family.
As such we have to change our thinking otherwise we will fall prey to another form of depression which is job search depression. Job search depression is a vicious cycle of depression that makes the youth more handicapped and unable to do anything because they always remain in search of the job and when they fail to get it they fall prey to the difficult stage of depression.
Almost everybody who is jobless is facing depression. The struggle for searching for a job had left people unemployed or rather I can say jobless people and they feel rejected, stressed, anxious and overall pessimistic about their future. It is at this stage where from the jobless youth can fall prey to drugs and other kinds of unhealthy activities. One should realise that this kind of depression can further inhibit your job search, just stop the virus of depression and come out of these feelings. Do not lose hope, believe in yourself that you are going to get a job or otherwise you can start your own small-scale business unit instead of going through the complex feelings of depression to further fluctuate your mood, just believe in yourself that you can, just be confident don’t feel low that never get disappointed self-esteem for being rejected for a job and all just think constructive just don’t reject yourself for the person you are just build your confidence in your abilities.
Unfortunately, just negative feeling about your abilities, confidence, and courage affects your overall mindset which invites the virus of depression and this virus also affects other areas of your life. In fact, a jobless man is worried about how to support his family and how to run the family. The pressure you put on yourself just creates unrealistic expectations, and when you don’t meet them you develop or harbour more stress and depression. Remember in life, never lose hope for anything just what you need to do is to work hard for your comfort, if you are unemployed and have financial problems at present but think in the future these are going to vanish just if you struggle and work hard for your better future.
Hence what is something you can do today to achieve your dreams and to make life comfortable and the world a better place? Go and do it. Just sticking to negative thoughts would never result in a change of problems in life you just need to stand up and struggle for a better life. In the holy Quran, it has been mentioned that one should never be disappointed by the blessings of God. Hopelessness has been declared unfaithful so why worry, God helps those who help themselves. Let us all unemployed degree holders stand up and carve our own destination without taking any pressure. Just be happy for what you have and just struggle for your better tomorrow and better future.
Moreover, to increase their standard of living, private school teachers’ salaries should be raised. The government should regularise highly educated young people and lower the retirement age by a few years so that more and more young people have the opportunity to work and lead healthy and respectable lives.
In order for students to be able to launch their own businesses after graduating from colleges or universities, art and craft instruction should be incorporated into the curriculum. They should be self-sufficient financially, which would ease the strain on applicants for government positions.
The government should offer incentives and programmes to encourage young people to start dairy farming, horticultural, and fishing projects so they may create jobs rather than just look for employment. In addition, early mental support and resilience training programmes during higher education are required to perhaps reduce the increased risk of mental disorders among unemployed young in Kashmir.
The writer is working as Guest Faculty in Mathematics at GDC Women, Kupwara. He can be reached at ar************@***il.com