Srinagar, May 23 -- Every year, thousands of young people in Kashmir pursue the same careers, sit for the same examinations, and carry remarkably similar ambitions. Medicine and engineering continue to attract an overwhelming majority of students, as though the same path could naturally belong to everyone.

But somewhere amid this endless race, an important question is being forgotten: do students truly want the lives they are preparing themselves for?

This question began troubling me deeply during a recent visit to a library in Pulwama. With the NEET examination approaching, the atmosphere inside felt heavy with anxiety. Students sat surrounded by books, yet many appeared psychologically exhausted rather than genuinely motivated. Conver...