Kashmir's Unheard Voices: A Decade of Waiting for Justice, One Protest at a Time

It was another one of those days in Srinagar, where the crisp Kashmir air often carries more than just the scent of chinar leaves; sometimes, it's laden with the potent, weary cries of protest. And so it was again, as scores—hundreds, in truth—of daily wagers, those ever-patient, often-ignored pillars of the local workforce, took to the streets.

Their destination? The familiar Press Enclave, a place that, for many, has become a symbol of last resort, a space to make their silent struggles heard.

These weren't fleeting grievances, not by a long shot. No, this was a story steeped in years, stretching back over a decade, really, of promises made and, perhaps more tellingly, promises broken.

These dedicated individuals, casual laborers in the parlance of bureaucracy, have been toiling away, building the state, keeping its wheels turning, all the while living in a precarious limbo. Their hope, you see, rests on a single, long-awaited document: the report from a regularisation panel, submitted way back in 2013.

But here’s the rub, the heart of the matter, if you will: that very report, meant to chart a path to stability for thousands, has gathered dust.

It’s never been tabled in the Assembly, never discussed, never acted upon. Think about that for a moment. Years of anticipation, of holding onto a thread of hope, only to watch it fray and unravel. It's enough to make anyone, honestly, utterly fed up. And fed up they were, demanding nothing less than its immediate tabling and, crucially, the passage of an ordinance to finally regularise their positions.

The Jammu and Kashmir Casual and Daily Wagers Forum, their collective voice, highlighted the sheer scale of the issue.

We're talking about a staggering number here: approximately 61,000 casual laborers, a further 12,000 daily wagers, another 12,000 on consolidated pay, and then, yes, 1,200 contractual employees. All of them, living with the same gnawing uncertainty. It’s a vast segment of the workforce, deeply integral, yet perpetually on the fringes.

Their anger, frankly, felt entirely justified.

Leaders of the forum spoke of exploitation, of how successive governments—not just the current one, mind you, but those before it too—had conveniently sidestepped their plight. Each administration, it seems, inherited the problem but somehow never quite managed to solve it. It’s a familiar dance, isn’t it? Promises during campaigns, then silence once in power.

For these workers, though, it’s not just political maneuvering; it’s their very livelihoods, their families’ futures, hanging precariously in the balance.

The protest, loud and clear, was a plea for recognition, for dignity, for an end to this prolonged period of uncertainty. They’re not asking for handouts, no.

They’re simply asking for what was, by all accounts, promised to them: a fair shake, a stable job, a life free from the constant dread of not knowing what tomorrow brings. Will their unified voice finally cut through the bureaucratic inertia? One can only hope, for their sake, and for the broader principle of justice, that this time, just maybe, someone in power will truly listen.