“Private schools in Srinagar have expanded rapidly in residential areas, causing severe traffic congestion and urban planning issues. Large buildings and school buses overwhelm narrow lanes, exacerbated by parents’ vehicles at peak hours, creating daily nightmares.”
Shafqat Bukhari
In recent years, the mushrooming of private schools in residential colonies has turned from a quiet civic issue into a full-blown urban crisis in Kashmir. Across towns and cities, residential neighborhoods—once meant for peaceful living—have been converted into commercial schooling hubs, causing traffic jams, safety hazards, and civic inconvenience. The question that citizens are now asking, and rightly so, is: Who allowed this? Private schools in Srinagar, many of which began modestly with the promise of “neighborhood learning,” have rapidly expanded their infrastructure without proper urban or traffic planning. Multi-story school buildings, fleets of buses, and hundreds of students now occupy narrow residential lanes not designed for such load. Parents’ vehicles crowd the roads at peak hours, creating daily traffic nightmares. In some areas, emergency vehicles struggle to pass through because streets are choked with school buses and cars. Noise pollution, safety risks to children, and obstruction to residents’ movement have become part of daily life. It is not that residents are against education or private institutions. What people demand is regulation and accountability. The local municipal bodies, development authorities, and traffic departments seem to have looked the other way while permissions were granted—or ignored altogether. Many of these schools operate without proper land-use conversion, violating the basic zoning laws. Residential plots have been commercially exploited under the guise of “educational institutions,” leading to a breakdown of civic planning. The administration cannot absolve itself of responsibility. How were such schools allowed to operate without adequate parking, safety exits, or environmental clearances? Were the urban development and traffic police departments ever consulted before issuing permissions?
“A concise policy is needed on where schools can operate, traffic generation, and safety. Authorities must audit and revoke permissions for non-compliant schools, ensuring responsible operation without causing civic chaos or traffic issues.”
The absence of coordination among these agencies has created a system where private profit has taken precedence over public order. Moreover, this crisis reflects a deeper problem—the commercialization of education. Education, once a service, has now become a lucrative business venture. Private school owners often justify their expansion by claiming to meet “growing demand,” but the result is unplanned urban chaos. The same government that preaches discipline and order must ensure it applies to all sectors, including private education. Citizens deserve to know whether the administration intends to relocate such institutions to properly zoned educational clusters. A clear policy on where schools can operate, how much traffic they can generate, and what safety infrastructure they must maintain is essential. Authorities should also conduct a strict audit of all schools functioning in residential areas and revoke permissions for those violating norms. Ultimately, the issue is not just about traffic congestion—it is about governance, accountability, and the right to live in an organized environment. Private schools play an important role in shaping our future, but they must do so responsibly, not at the cost of civic chaos. It is high time the government acts before this “education-driven traffic mess” becomes a permanent feature of our urban landscape.
