It was never a choice for us coming from a remote village in Zanskar valley (Padum) but rather a compulsory option to go away from home at such a young age just to get an education. I wouldn’t say “just” when we sacrifice all and everything we have for education. All the sacrifices our families made to make sure we have sufficient education – that’s how much value education holds in this generation.

We all are aware that Ladakh is known for its harsh winter, where the temperature reaches minus degrees. Coming from a place like that where all the businesses and transport almost don’t work for six months due to harsh winter and yet, I have never for once spent a winter there. I am guilty about that, but I had no option. All the options I had was to make sure I would be educated.

The place where I come from is beautiful; if only I could express that in words. It’s a place where I find peace, maybe because I have a place called “home” there. Since childhood, I have been used to this, staying away from home, but as I get older, it feels that I am missing some things. I miss my parents and my siblings, and when I visit them during summer break, they feel older than before. I truly don’t want to miss seeing my siblings growing up in my absence. I surely want to make lots and lots of memories with my parents, and I surely and truly don’t want to miss seeing my siblings participating and enjoying school events.

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All of this feels like a dream. I have hardly spent my childhood in my hometown, and I have missed a lot, missed discovering a lot of places, missed all of those childhood vibing friends; I surely have some friends reunited after a long time, and they are a blessing to me. I visit my hometown during summer breaks for a month or two, and don’t even ask how it feels; it truly feels like home. I am just enjoying it all the time.

Lately, I and some of my close friends have been visiting a lot of places and it is all so surreal, and then there is this moment when I realize I have to go back to reality, the last night at home, everything is emotional, but all this effort would not go in vain – surely Allah will reward us.

I am very close to my father, the one person I miss the most, and I hate the feeling that if one day I get to go back to my hometown, wouldn’t it be obvious for everyone to think I am starting a new chapter but in reality, I have not yet finished the most important chapter in my life, that is making lots and lots of memories with my family.

Ladakh region with a population of 2.75 lakh as per 2011 census has a student population of 40%. As per the rough estimates, around 90% of students from Ladakh have enrolled in different Universities across the country for studies and the remaining 10% study in Ladakh,” said the Governor’s release. With more than 30,000 undergraduate and postgraduate students from Ladakh studying outside, a lot of money is being drained out of the region. Moreover, the financial and emotional stress on students and their families is high.