Sayyed P Qaisar
The news of a meeting of Kashmir Chamber of Commerce and Industry (KCCI) and the Jammu & Kashmir government, led by then-Chief Minister Omar Abdullah, aimed at addressing the region’s economic crisis caught my eye in today’s newspapers.
While the initiative is good, but it leaves certain issues unanswered particularly in Industrial sector. The mention of a “legacy of previous years” needs to be stopped now. Rather than living in the past, let’s move forward and address the present and future issues. All the discussion seems to have centered around the recent unfortunate incident at Pahalgam a its impact on Kashmir economy. Even the suggestions put forth, predictably revolved round the same issue with a stark lack of future.
It is apparent that KCCI had done its homework and presented a multi-faceted plan. A rarity amongst local trade bodies. Also presenting a “unified voice” is a welcome sign.
In spite of all this my impressions are varied. Take a look.
- A Familiar Script: The interaction follows a pattern often seen in Kashmir: the business community articulates genuine distress and offers solutions, and the government offers assurances, highlighting “partnership-based governance.” Then- silence.
- Hope vs. Realism: While dialogue is always welcome, there’s a palpable gap between the articulated hopes for economic revival and the harsh, often intractable, ground realities that continuously undermine such efforts. Some within the control of KCCI and other trade bodies themselves.
- Addressing Symptoms, Not Causes: Many proposed solutions address the symptoms of the economic crisis (cash flow problems, reduced demand) rather than the root causes such as impression of political instability, frequent security disruptions and fuzzy implementation of policies at every level.
- Persistent problems: While the specific political leadership might have changed, the fundamental economic challenges and the nature of the “ground realities” (conflict, instability, policy deficit) have, in many ways, persisted or even exacerbated making of such interactions timelessly replays of previous issues.
- Limited Local Agency: The repeated need to approach the “Union Finance Ministry” or “Central Government” highlights the limited agency of the local administration in effectuating large-scale economic change, a factor that has become even more pronounced post-August 2019.
- Role of trade bodies like KCCI: The issues raised and discussed have bypassed one or two serious issues. Firstly, why was there an immediate lay-off of staff post April 22nd? Second, the industry is suffering due to a chronic case of return of debt/ credit from the market. Any where from 3 to 12 months credit is killing the local industry more than anything else.
It is here that the Trade bodies/ Chambers can play a vital role.
Overall, the meeting represents a necessary and constructive engagement. However, its ultimate success in genuinely reviving Kashmir’s economy is heavily contingent on factors far beyond the control of the KCCI or even the state government. Unless the fundamental “poor ground realities” are addressed with political will and a focus on sustainable peace, stability and good implementation of policies, such economic revival packages and meetings risk becoming cyclical exercises with limited long-term impact. The business community’s resilience is commendable, but it cannot single-handedly overcome systemic obstacles. Or it cannot expect the govt. to always come to its rescue. It must build a mechanism to address these issues.
