By: Javeed Bin Nabi,
As the world has terribly shrink and turned-out what the social scientists call as a “globalized society” or a “global village”. This shrinkingness of the world has been unprecedently fostered by the mightiest pace of globalization phenomena which was followed by the instant technological and communication revolution. It had its impact on each institution and so is true of academia also.
International Relations (IR) being a post-war multidisciplinary academic subject and also an independent area of study became one of the sought-after and were called a “specialist study”. It was called so, because it facilitates us with the answers to those complex questions that not only have changed but shaped the contemporary world order.
IR being a post-war academic innovation has been introduced in many universities throughout the world and in post-Independence era India isn't an exception. In India, many state and national level universities introduced the subject to fill the gap in the existing policy making and formulation. However, J&K lagged behind and it was only Islamic University of Science and Technology (IUST) back in 2012 after changing the nomenclature from International peace and conflict studies to International Relations (peace and conflict studies) that a Post-Graduation programme is underway. The department came with an objective as my former HOD once wrote “It had a broad vision of producing graduates skilled in conflict resolution with a strong theoretical background”. Undeniably, it provided a platform & was new in the universities of Jammu and Kashmir to make wider understanding in students about the process & establishment of relations and a continuous change at the national and world level between the respective political units which directly or indirectly affects the everyday life.
Rationally speaking, the introduction of a new subject was all fine & a good move in the academic system of Jammu and Kashmir. But, the reality is that each one of us study and receive higher education with an aim to compete and settle with a good salaried job & have an independent financial stability.
Coming to the main argument, since, the inception of the International Relations as a separate subject at IUST, but irony is that it has not been recognised by the Higher Education Department of J&K till date. Even J&KPSC till date had not advertised a single 10+2 lecturer and Assistant-Professor vacancies. What is more ironical is that the State Eligibility Test (SET) agency which determines the eligibility for the Lectureship and Assistant-Professorship in 38 academic subjects has also not introduced the discipline in 2013, 2016 and now in 2021-2022 exam notifications scheduled in May this year. All these gloomy state of affairs of the subject has increased frustrations & pains to IR degree holders.
It is sad to say, that till date more than 200 students have received degrees before and after the changing of nomenclature of the department from IUST. However, according to the prevailing treatment of the subject, it can be argued that these degrees are of no use in the prevailing academic market. As, in the eyes of the Higher Education Department, these degrees hasn’t been considered valid.This is evident in their recruitment notifications from last one decade & more. Besides, the subject has also received the same treatment from the university where it was first introduced. Pertinent to mention that many of my former colleagues and seniors are anguished and regretted; why they had joined the course. Of course, the anguish is genuine, but who cares?
The non-serious attitude of the IUST administration and HED of UT of Jammu and Kashmir has broken and derailed the dreams of the IR degree-holders who were hoping to serve in academics at different levels. However, the saddest part of the story is that many IR degree holders have also completed their post-doc degrees but all the time their applications rejected even at the yearly announced academic arrangements (contractual level) by HED. These repeated rejections means that whether ad-hoc or the permanent posts at the higher secondary & college level in International Relations subject has become a farfetched dream.
Keeping in view, the gloomy picture & the uncertain future of the above academic discipline, this author who had also majored in the same when learnt that the discipline hasn’t been recognised by the higher education department, SET agency and till date the subject hasn't been introduced at higher secondary and college levels, was left with no other choice but to take an admission in political science at the University of Kashmir. At least, the new choice provides me a chance to compete, to sit in a state level exam like SET and gives a hope to study for the forthcoming academic arrangements by the Department of Higher Education of Jammu and Kashmir.
Lastly, I firmly believe that IR being one of the significant contemporary academic disciplines could’ve easily been made available in other UT universities of Jammu and Kashmir. The same could’ve been recognized by the Higher Education Department as a separate subject at higher secondary, UG and PG levels. But unfortunately, the dysfunctional academics and the shoddy picture of higher education system in the UT of Jammu and Kashmir left all the degree holders of International Relations at lurch & helpless.
Surprisingly, I don’t know why, the higher education department hasn’t introduced the discipline as a separate subject in universities like KU, JU and BGSBU to engage the IR passouts & make their degrees valuable. At the end, one can argue that state being a highest organ & has a full responsibility to generate employment avenues & work collectively for the further development of academics in Jammu and Kashmir. If states fail, chaos & alienation take roots in the minds of an individual & becomes detrimental to both.
Before I conclude, I being, the former student of International Relations subject humbly requests the worthy Vice Chancellor of IUST to take this matter seriously and discuss it with the higher authorities who are running the state of academic affairs. In addition, I also request the SET agency to include International Relations (peace and conflict studies) as a separate subject and give an equal chance to the hundreds of students.
Author is Student of Political Science at Kashmir University
