Social problems pose a serious threat to the people at large in any given society. The list of current social problems in the valley is endless and that needs to be addressed as soon as possible. The adverse consequences of any social problem can do a serious damage to the existing social fabric. Social issues disturb the social, economic and psychological balance in a community. Kashmir society is still sensitive about basic moral values and may take few more decades to strike a fine balance between modernity and culture. Those calling for social reform against the “onslaught from alien cultures” need to focus on the economic part of the age-old social practices, which now have become so costly that the young boys and girls from humbler backgrounds find it difficult to get married on time. Handing out edicts is easy but providing alternatives and giving out solutions is somewhat difficult. But those posing as reformists of Kashmir society appear so much wedded to the fundamentals of religion that they can’t take up any challenge to mend the ills our society has afflicted over these years. When a young girl does not get a match just because her father cannot afford a big showoff in the form of jewelry, Wazwan etc, she is compelled to supplement her father’s income and her father in turn is compelled to indulge in wrongdoing such as corruption. Now that the inflation has seen the gold prices shooting to unaffordable levels, the poor (not necessarily the ragged beggars) are the worst hit as they prepare for the marriage of their children. May be many of the scheduled marriages don’t take place this year owing to the sky high inflation and by the unwritten social law that everyone must indulge in variable forms of dowry system. This situation should evoke a response from civil society organizations, NGOs and other social reform platforms. These organizations should expand their reach towards some meaningful action. Need of the hour is to build a social consensus against dowry, drug abuse and other social evils that are prevalent in our society. Organizing seminars and conclaves wherein a common consensus can evolve that dowry in any form neither be accepted nor demanded, can go long way in curbing this social evil. Educational institutions can play an important role by creating awareness among the students against dowry practice and other social problems. Tech-savvy students can launch ‘No to Dowry’ campaigns on internet via social networking sites such as Face book and Twitter. It is our collective responsibility to pull the society out of the ill social practices.
