Srinagar, Sept. 5 -- By Palveen Kour

A college auditorium can fill up in an afternoon. A notice goes out, attendance is tied to a fest or seminar, and by two o'clock the hall is packed with young people who never chose to be there.

Administrators call it participation, but many students see it as a tax on their time, paid with hours they can scarcely spare.

That gets to the heart of the problem. Extracurricular activities have a place in college, but somewhere along the way, event attendance has begun to outweigh the education students are paying for.

For a student preparing for a competitive exam, three lost hours can mean the difference between a solved paper and an unfinished one.

Those hours belong to the student, and colleges sh...