Pakistan-occupied Jammu and Kashmir (PoJK) is grappling with a rapidly worsening environmental and social emergency, as rising pollution, rampant deforestation and increasing poverty leave local communities struggling for survival.
Residents say the twin crises are intensifying each day, with little to no government intervention on the ground.
Weeks without rainfall have turned the region’s air hazardous, thick with dust, smoke and toxic pollutants. Locals report that expanding forest fires, many of them deliberately ignited, are making conditions even more dangerous. According to residents, skyrocketing gas prices have pushed many people to cut down trees and burn forested areas in search of cheaper fuel, accelerating environmental destruction.
People are cutting down forests very quickly. There is a lot of fire in the jungles,” said PoJK resident Saad Hameed Kiyani, blaming drought conditions and rising gas prices for the uncontrolled fires. He noted that pollution-related diseases are rising sharply. “Some people are getting allergic, some people are getting pneumonia,” he added, highlighting the growing public health threat.
Alongside the environmental crisis, the region’s social fabric is straining under severe economic distress. Youth in PoJK, both educated and uneducated, are facing a bleak future marked by unemployment and deteriorating mental health. Despite investing large sums in higher education, many graduates find themselves jobless or forced into work unrelated to their field of study.
There are problems for both educated and illiterate youth,” Kiyani explained. “People have invested millions of rupees in universities, but when they go to the field, they do not get jobs or opportunities. They are suffering from depression.”
Those without education or skills face even harsher struggles. With soaring prices and limited job opportunities, many families are slipping deeper into poverty, unable to meet basic needs.
Residents of PoJK say they are being pushed toward an uncertain future, as forests vanish, air turns toxic, and livelihoods shrink.
