Srinagar, June 21 -- The announcement by Jammu and Kashmir's Education Minister, Sakina Itoo, that all government and private schools in the Kashmir division will observe a ten-day summer break starting July 1, is a long-overdue but welcome step. This decision, though seemingly routine in other parts of India, holds significant importance in Kashmir which is traditionally spared from the worst of summer's fury but now increasingly grappling with rising temperatures as the effects of climate change begin to take root. Until recently, Kashmir's temperate summers allowed schools to function without the need for extended summer vacations. But the past few years have painted a different picture. This June, temperatures across the Valley soared...