When Kashmir went pitch-dark after Syed Ali Shah Geelani's death, the uncertainty of it all is what scared Asiya Qadir, who was preparing for her interview with a university in Italy. A fully-funded scholarship was on the line. "If I had missed that interview on September 14, I would've missed the chance to get this amazing scholarship," says Qadir, who will now be stepping out of the valley for the very first time to achieve her career goals.
"My research was interrupted for a few days due to the internet blackout. I had no access to online journals for my interview. But alhamdulillah, everything worked out as the internet was back up soon," she says. Qadir (26) grew up in Bandipora and went to a college in Sopore where she gained a BSc degree. By the end of her course, Qadir developed a liking for Geology, which took her to Kashmir University where she got her Master's in Applied Geology. She is now all set to pursue her PhD from the University of Parma in Italy. "My interview went well, I scored 76 out of a possible 80 in the interview. I was told by the university authorities that I had topped the interview," Qadir says with glee.
Her rocky dreams ahead
Qadir was actively looking for scholarship programmes in various universities when she stumbled upon the call for research scholars on UoP's website. What fascinated her was the research topic listed on the site. "It is a good university as well. I want to explore the geology of other parts of the world, explore the Central Mediterranean and not just be limited to the Himalayas," she says. "I want to collate and compare the geology of different parts of the world," she adds.
She gives due credit to her Kashmir University professors as well as a Kashmir-origin Assistant Professor of Structural Geology at the University of Brunei, Afroz Ahmad Shah. "I got in touch with Professor Afroz after reading his column in Rising Kashmir, we have also written a paper together. He has been my guide." But, she says, it is a male dominated field to get into. "It is a highly male dominated subject, girls usually don't go into research in this subject as it requires a lot of field work. Researchers have to go to remote locations," Qadir says.
Pushing the boundaries steadily
Daughter of a retired government employee and a homemaker, Asiya is the first in her family of five to step out of the country. She recalls how, while getting her master's degree, her parents worried about her field work. "Although they have never restricted me in any way — they have supported me in every way — the situation in Kashmir is always volatile," she says.
Qadir highlights how the omnipresent army and general sexism make it difficult for several young female students in the valley to go out for field work. She adds that even as she went out for her work, she was subjected to taunts and stares from people around. There were 10 girls out of the total 30 students in her master's class. "Parents find it very difficult to send their daughters to the field, everything is very volatile." She adds that the security forces may ask for permission letters from the university while on the field, "I had to show them my ID card and permission letter, that's it. Once you produce that, nobody is going to interrupt you," she says. However, she adds that continuous army presence in the valley and frequent conflicts have taken a toll on her and many like her.
"Children can get scared of small things and when you have people in uniform all around, it can be scary. It has been disturbing for me since childhood," Qadir says. She adds, "These curfews, these hartals, these protests, the volatility of Kashmir has affected every child, every student. Many struggle to complete their degrees on time, access to academic resources via the internet is lost frequently. This makes the life of students very difficult."
