Unemployment: A cause for depression among youth
By: ARIF RASHID
According to the World Health Organisation, “depressive disorders are the fourth leading health problems 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.
Depression is a global mental health condition that affects people to varied degrees in different regions. Greece, Spain, Portugal, Palestine, and Tunisia are countries that record the highest cases of depressed.
Unfortunately the UT of Jammu and Kashmir too has seen a huge surge in the cases of depression recently and according to Center For Monitoring Indian Economy (CMIE) 46% of Jammu and Kashmir youth was unemployed- second highest in the country- a potential cause for wide spread depression and other health issues.
A reputed senior psychiatrist, Dr Arshid, states that Kashmir has already faced a lot from decades of turmoil and that unemployment and diminishing job avenues were new challenges to mental halth in Kashmir. This, he said, could ruin our youngster’s. Stating that the majority of cases that he and his team attend each day, unemployment is the main cause of their anxiety.
Numerous issues stem from unemployment. It can have a negative impact on a community’s economic, social, and emotional well-being. Numerous issues have an explicit or implicit connection to unemployment including family conflict, alienation, humiliation, stigma, stress, despair, and even suicide. It’s time for us to get together and fight for greater job possibilities.
While there are several causes behind depression, the youth however, are facing the toughest times in view of the lack of job opportunities either in the government sector or even in the private sector. When you have worked hard and obtained a decent qualification in order to obtain any suitable employment and yet you don’t find a place to render services, it is definitely going to hurt the sentimentality as well as self-esteem.
The fact is that the educated lot here was already dealing with awful unemployment, economic, social, and cultural issues, the way government job recruiting agencies are playing with their emotions has further added to the stress levels.
Indeed, qualified and degree-holders are not afraid of taking competitive tests, and they are ready and have almost prepared themselves for such competitions, but they are sceptical about the recruitment policies, unusual and unexplained delays as well as exam’s authenticity.
It has been well recognised that during the last several years, the problem of unemployment has been exceedingly large, and the youth are facing this difficulty more than ever. However, now that the credibility of reputable recruiting organisations has been compromised and the government has taken note of it, the qualified youth preparing for competitive tests are dismayed and disheartened. They are not bothered about the competition, but they are concerned about how they have been subjected to a humiliating pattern.
In reality, the skilled youth have been leading stressful lives as a result of these unfavourable circumstances and 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.
The youth must start thinking beyond the obvious and explore ways and means so that they don’t depend of jobs and rather become entrepreneurs. If you have put up a lot of effort but have not been successful in getting a 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. If you fight for a 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 be sad.
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.”
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. It is already established 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.
Suicides in Kashmir are rising at an alarming rate. Imagine that the cement bridge in Noor Bagh area of Srinagar has become a notorious point for suicide. Locals now call this bridge- the Suicide Bridge! 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 puts great strain on the minds of Kashmiri youth and they become more vulnerable to depression, anxiety and in some extreme cases suicide!
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 help people overcome pain or suffering, but many young people use them as a quick fix for stress.
The deep-seated political instability, unemployment, lack of development and avenues as well as other social and geographic issues are to blame for the rising 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 the policy makers to step forward.
Author is working as Guest Faculty in Mathematics at GDCKupwara
