A young freelance journalist in Kashmir shares her journey from childhood fascination with news to facing harsh realities—low pay, pressure, and now government verification circulars demanding documents freelancers don’t have.

Then came November. On 3 November, I saw a news report saying the Jammu & Kashmir government planned to “weed out fake journalists.” At first, I thought it was about those who misuse social media to spread misinformation in the name of journalism.

But soon, it became clear that this decision would affect everyone, including legitimate, independent journalists.