Data | One year since Article 370 revocation: economy crippled, more locals take up militancy, and more

The impact of two extensive lockdowns on J&K explained in seven charts

File photo of CRPF personnel standing guard at a market during the shutdown in Srinagar, in the aftermath of Article 370 abrogation.

Two spells of lockdown — the first after Jammu and Kashmir was stripped of its statehood and its special constitutional status and the second related to COVID-19 — have left the erstwhile State in disarray.

With the tourism industry crippled and 4G Internet still not restored , J&K’s economy has suffered. While terrorism considerably dipped, cross-border infiltrations have gone up and more locals are being recruited for terrorist activities.

Internet snapped

The Internet shutdown in the J&K U.T. between August 4, 2019 and March 4, 2020 was the longest in any democracy. Even after the shutdown ended, only 2G and broadband Internet were restored.

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Tourism hit

Tourism, which forms 8-10% of J&K’s GDP, was in a shambles after the August 5, 2019 lockdown. Less than 50,000 tourists visited the U.T. between August and December 2019.

 

Economy shock

In the 120 days after August 5, 2019, the 10 districts of the Kashmir Valley suffered a loss of ₹17,878.18 cr. according to the Kashmir Chamber of Commerce & Industry. Here is how the figure was arrived at:

 

State of joblessness

The CMIE data show that the unemployment rate (UR) breached the 20% mark in August 2019 after staying below the figure for 30 months.

Lockdown impact

Terrorism-related deaths hit a low in 2012 after continuously declining from 2001. However, terrorism returned to the Valley since, peaking in 2018.

Fatalities drop

According to the South Asia Terrorism Portal (SATP), the lockdown and increase in Army presence led to a decrease in terrorism-related deaths. Yet the fatalities post-lockdown were higher compared to the low levels seen in 2012.

Local threat

Despite the decrease in terrorism-related deaths, the number of local recruits increased. In 2020, until March, 87.5% of the militants killed were locals according to SATP.

 

Also, according to data furnished in Parliament, infiltration attempts across the border increased significantly.

Source: Jammu and Kashmir: The Impact of Lockdowns on Human Rights, internshutdowns.in