A Celebration

Last week’s celebrations at Army Goodwill School [AGS] Pahalgam [J&K] marked 10-years of the Indian army’s Udhampur based Northern Command’s partnership with Bharti Airtel Foundation and this school. This occasion was far more than just routine observance of a mundane time-linked milestone marking a decade-long fruitful association- it was a special occasion for two reasons.
One, it reflects the Indian army’s unconditional commitment towards creating requisite infrastructure for providing quality education to children in remote areas of J&K and Ladakh, and two, it highlights active corporate participation in an army welfare initiative undertaken to provide quality secondary education. It also serves as a classic endorsement of the age-old “truth outlasts malice” adage.
That Northern Army Commander Lt Gen Pratik Sharma and Bharti Airtel Foundation Co-Chairman Rakesh Bharti Mittal made it a point to attend the celebrations organised by AGS Pahalgam indicates the importance being accorded to education in J&K. Speaking on the occasion, Lt Gen Sharma aptly summed up the purpose of the army’s AGS outreach by saying, “your peace is our purpose, your aspirations are our mission and your success is our pride.”

AGS Saga

AGS are today extremely popular in J&K and its people consider it an unalienable asset. However, its story definitely hasn’t been a walk in the park. Au contraire, this well meaning and genuine educational initiative was maligned by the pro-Pakistan separatist lobby through a vicious misinformation campaign. Ironically, the most vocal critic of AGS was separatist leader SAS Geelani-the man who claimed to be the representative of Kashmiris.
A person who saw a conspiracy in everything, Geelani alleged that “Goodwill schools are part of their [Indian army’s] long term policy to strengthen occupation,” adding, “they are psychologically preparing our new generation to accomplish their nefarious designs.” He even claimed that AGS “have been set up for indoctrination of Kashmiri students, and these institutions run by the army make students indifferent towards their religion and culture.”
Besides the elaborate vilification campaign, in 2013, separatist sympathisers even tried to torch AGS at Hajin in Bandipora district of North Kashmir. However, the blaze was quickly extinguished by fire fighters with the help of locals who turned up in large numbers- an indication that this arson attempt did not have any public support and subsequent events confirmed this.
Soon after this arson attempt, rumours that the military authorities would be permanently closed down started doing the rounds. The locals made a collective appeal for reopening AGS Hajin and even gave an assurance that they would ensure that no harm would come to the school and it has been functioning since then without any disruption.

Truth Triumphs

Despite their all-out efforts to mislead parents and repeated directions not to send their children to AGS, locals paid no heed to separatist leaders. This was because after seeing the professional manner in which AGS were functioning, the people realised that the army had no hidden agenda or ulterior motives behind this critical educational initiative.
It would be pertinent to recount an incident that unambiguously reveals the high degree of public faith which the people of Kashmir have in the army and the contempt with which they treat orders from separatists. It is related to Dukhtaran-e-Millat [DeM], an all-women Kashmiri separatist organisation that advocates establishment of sharia and merger of Kashmir with Pakistan through jihad.
As part of its curriculum to enhance general awareness of its pupils, AGS organises regular outstation tours for students. In December 2015, DeM chairperson Aasiya Andrabi strongly objected to one such tour organised for 30 girls studying in class 11 and 12. She termed the consent of parents for this tour “shameful and deplorable,” and told a local news agency, “I am not appealing to these parents but warning them to desist from such activities.”
Since the early 90s, DeM acquired a notorious reputation of using physical force including acid attacks on women defying its moral code diktat of wearing a face veil and burqa. Probably that’s why Andrabi may have assumed that her explicit warning would terrorise both the students who had signed up for this educational tour as well as their parents. However, she must have got a rude shock when not even one of the 30 students opted out from this trip.
Why did AGS students and their parents dismiss the DeM chairperson’s threat? The answer is simple. In July 2010, Andrabi took the high moral ground by saying that “Losses of life, material and the education of children are inevitable in our freedom struggle.” However, the public was aware that while she was asking people to accept disruption in their children’s education, she herself had already applied for her teenage son’s passport to study abroad. Who can forgive such brazen duplicity?

Growth Story

Starting from humble beginnings, the AGS initiative has braved a hostile environment intentionally created by separatists and emerged victorious thanks to the army’s sincerity and dedication in ensuring that education is kept fully insulated from all extraneous considerations. Full credit also goes to the people of Kashmir, who by putting their children in AGS displayed their unflinching faith in the Indian army and for seeing through the web of lies and duplicity woven by separatists.
Today, UTs of J&K and Ladakh have 43 AGS with about 17,000 students, 43 percent of whom are girls. AGS students are doing extremely well and making their alma mater proud. And by observing that “AGS are the critical substrate in making winners out of ordinary people,” Lt Gen Sharma has his appositely captured the heart and soul of this project, which has [and will continue to] help thousands of students from marginalised sections of society residing in remote areas in fulfilling their aspirations.

Email:-----------------------nileshkunwar.56@gmail.com