The lockdown that coronavirus has imposed upon much of the world is nothing new for those living in Indian-controlled Kashmir. The region was already reeling from the catastrophic impact of a seven-month-long military lockdown when the coronavirus pandemic hit and the Indian government swiftly increased the powers of the military siege on Kashmir.

The lockdown emerges from the Indian government’s unilateral order to revoke Kashmir’s nominal autonomy and turn it into a federally administered territory, a bill that was passed in parliament in August last year. The region was turned into a military garrison overnight, with Indian army and paramilitaries ruling over the streets, in what India’s media has referred to as a “final solution” for Kashmir’s decades-old political dispute.

In subsequent months, the region’s economy practically crashed to the tune of $2.4 billion USD. Owing to strict military curfews, everything from agriculture to small businesses and tourism — the sectors that keep Kashmir’s economy afloat — was brought to a standstill. Already struggling to survive in these conditions, Kashmir’s working class — mainly comprising precariously employed hourly workers, small business owners, and the peasantry — are now facing compounding crises thanks to the threat of the virus, which has already claimed three lives in the region.