Measuring education by buildings constructed or through examinations passed is no longer the acceptable norm in a region like Jammu and Kashmir, which in the recent past, has experienced and witnessed prolonged periods of disturbance and instability.

Today’s Jammu and Kashmir is different. In the second quarter of the new millennium, under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Chief Minister Omar Abdullah, both the Centre and the UT Administration, have laid emphasis on overhauling the education ecosystem in J&K through a series of initiatives. These include financial, infrastructural, and digital measures.
The following areas are in key focus:
To modernise the regional education system, both the Centre and the UT administration have committed to identify396 schools under the PM SHRI (PM Schools for Rising India) scheme. Backed by an approved budget of Rs.243 crore for the 2026–27 cycle, these institutions are being modernised to include and promote skills, high-quality pedagogy and smart classrooms required for the 21st century work place.
In the last three years, under the flagship Samagra Shiksha Abhiyan (Scheme), the Centre has released funds to the tune of over Rs.2200 crore for additional classrooms, upgrading of science laboratories and for providing sports facilities.
Through its K-12 Scheme, 714 high schools have been identified to improve senior secondary school access and reduce dropouts after Class 10 in remote areas of the region.
The Union Ministry of Education has also fully operationalised a state-of-the-art data analytics and educational monitoring center in Jammu, which tracks student enrollment, retention and learning in real-time.
There are many other similar schemes, but our focus is on the yeoman service the Indian Army is providing in the field of education through its 43 Army Goodwill Schools or AGS.
The AGS are the finest examples of the Indian Army's soft engagement with the Kashmiri community and children in the Valley and Ladakh. Emerging from the Indian Army's “Operation Sadbhavana”, a wider outreach programme, the AGS are used as an important area of engagement where security and development move in unison.
The AGS network exists in areas where geography, economic duress and years of instability have often made access to education difficult. For over 25 years now, these 43 Army Goodwill Schools have operated on the dictum of “One child at a time; one family at a time and one village at a time.” The official AGS network has around 17,000 students, of which 43 percent are girls. They are approximately 1,000 faculty employed across the network.
The Army has fundamentally understood one inescapable truth – that in Jammu and Kashmir, peace must translate into opportunity. To offer basic schooling in remote and underserved regions, therefore, needed an initiative that had to be life altering. The classrooms of the past were places where students sat at wooden desks, but today, they are environments where eager young minds are taught to learn, question and develop a spirit of inquiry to be able to address issues more efficiently and effectively.For example, the students in AGS in remote Hajinar Valley are collaborating on community problem-solving projects, turning textbook concepts into real-world solutions for their villages. There is a belief among the faculty that thinking beyond the prescribed syllabus ensures productive transformation and promotes confidence in young and aspiring children.
Children in these AGS are no longer paralysed by stage fear, or low in self-confidence. Helped by qualified mentors, activity-based workshops and supportive presentation exercises, AGS students have poise and confidence to express their views and ideas. They have discovered their strengths, have overcome their shortcomings and have self- belief. Guidance and encouragement is advanced with patience through modern interactive learning modules.
Going beyond standard textbook learning, the AGS ecosystem bridges the gap between theoretical knowledge and practical experimentation, giving students a hands-on experience they can be proud of. Evolving from an inquisitive young learners into student innovators is what the AGS is aiming for.Interactive classrooms apart, AGS faculty and students are also given wider exposure through academic-oriented programs like Pragyaan. They visit higher education institutions like IITs and IIMs in partnerships with corporate entities as part of their CSR commitments. Child-centered Teaching–Learning Materials (TLM) have replaced passive listening with active, hands-on activities.
Army Goodwill Schools are not be seen or limited through the narrow prism of counter-insurgency or of "winning hearts and minds.", but what happens inside a classroom; where students are taught that remote geographic locations can never be a reason to limit their aspirations and ambitions.
From the high-altitude cold deserts of Drass to the remote valleys of Hajinar and Wuzur, these schools are providing something far more enduring than routine instruction. They are building a foundation of confidence, curiosity, and resilience—proving that when you give children the tools to innovate and believe in themselves, they will build their own brighter futures.
Preparing for their future. That is the objective these Army Goodwill Schools should be most proud of. With the passage of time, these 28 schools in Kashmir, eight in Jammu and seven in Ladakh have acquired a larger than life identity; they have become institutions of belief for families and children alike. It is a meaningful and remarkable legacy.

Email:------------------------farooqwani61@yahoo.co.in