Srinagar, Oct. 23 -- Picture a house in Awantipora, Kashmir, on a cold November evening. The kangri glows warmly, kahwa simmers in the samovar, and a packed suitcase stands by the door. The next morning, the eldest son will leave for Delhi to study data science. His mother, weighed down by thoughts of separation, has hardly slept for a week. His father has taken out a loan he has not disclosed to his relatives. An aunt has already asked, more than once, "Was there nothing for him in Srinagar?"This scene, far from being confined to one household in Awantipora, plays out in thousands of homes across Kashmir every year. And every year, we ask the wrong question. We ask why our children are leaving when we should be asking what happens to the...