Peer Mohammad Amir Qureshi
Jammu and Kashmir is a region where agriculture is the chief economic activity of the people. Agriculture is the backbone of J&K’s economy. It provides employment to 64% of the population directly or indirectly.The apples and walnuts of kashmir are famous all over the world.Horticulture in kashmir has the maximum yield per hectare Kashmiri apples and walnuts are famous all over the world but year after year the fruit growers of Kashmir have had been suffering in one way or the other.Despite being high in produce Kashmiri apples and walnut’s are Gasping for breathe and survival as the intrusion of chunks of Iranian and Turkish Apples and Californian walnuts in indian cities casts a shadow on Kashmiris indigenous apples and walnut’s produce and bought down it’s price.There is minimal demand for Kashmiri apples and walnuts from the markets across the country due to which the rates have plummeted and the fruit growers are suffering losses as labour rate, transportation charges and prices of cardboard and wooden boxes are touching sky but the rate of the apples per box is as the same as it was before five to six years and the misery didn’t end up here because the trucks laden with apples are halted on national highway for three to four days which rot the apples and fruit growers have to loss which have taken loans from the banks.The halting of trucks along the Srinagar-Jammu highway has resulted in a loss of around ?500 crore to the apple industry in the month of September,” Mudasir Ahmed Bhat, president of the Buyers Association Fruit MandiSopore, said. Kashmir’s apple industry volume is around ?6,000 crore.
The Former Chief Minister of Jammu and Kashmir ( Indian occupied Kashmir)and PDP president Mehbooba Mufti Tuesday said she, along with fruit-truck drivers, will block the Srinagar-Jammu national highway if their vehicles are not allowed a smooth passage.”Lakhs of people depend on this (fruit trade), they have taken loans, they have taken money from Delhi’s mandis. Who will give them that money? Will you? So, I warn the government if you don’t open the road for trucks, then I along with others will block the national highway,” Mehbooba said in Shopian. She visited the south Kashmir district to join the protesting apple growers who have been demanding a smooth transit for the fruit-laden trucks stuck on the national highway.“You are not allowing us to bring our fruits, which are rotting in the mandis, but, we will not allow this. I appeal to you as well as warn you not to test the people of Kashmir,” she added.Mehbooba said horticulture is the backbone of the union territory’s economy, but attempts are being made to “damage” it. “It is not just about fruit growers, but transporters as well, who also have taken loans.This is economic terrorism. They say militancy has ended, but the Government of India is unleashing biggest terror against the people and horticulture here,” she said that the government is trying to do what the Jews did to Palestine by shutting them economically.“Trucks from Jammu to Kashmir reach here in a day, but trucks from Kashmir to other states of India are stopped for four-five days. If this is not a part of some conspiracy, then why it’s happening.
Yesterday a man from Sopore Axed his orchards owing to routine losses in Apple industry With meagre resources and huge loss in Apple orchards from last many years.Man from AramporaSopore Ghulam Mohd chopped off his apple Orchards in total chaos and he chopped down his more than five Kanal Apple orchards in disdain.He said that he is suffering huge losses from many years as Apple orchards is yielding him nothing despite doing all possible efforts to increase his income.He lamented that Spurious fertilizers, soaring market prices, and exorbitant rates of items has forced him to take this extreme step.Morever the walnut industry has also hit badly after the intrusion of Californian walnuts in indianmarkets.There are three varieties of walnuts that grow in Kashmir. “These are locally called Wonth, Kagazi, and Burzul. The Wonth is a hard nut to crack. It is mostly sold locally and is used for its oil. The Kagzi is a larger-size walnut with a thin outer shell. The Burzul is a medium-size variety and all are top quality walnuts.Theoffical figures suggest that India produced 2.82 lakh tons of walnuts in 2021-22 with J&K accounting for around 92 per cent of the produce. Anantnag and Kupwara are the leading producers of walnuts in Kashmir.The year wise-walnut production in Kashmir states 190,451 MTs in 2017-2018, 198,431 MT in 2018-2019, 180,973 MT in 2019-2020, 177,070 MT in 2020-2021 and 182,659 in 2021-2022.Walnut cultivation continues to shrink steadily from 47,004 hectares in 2017-18, 46,118 hectares in 2018-2019, 46,175 hectares in 2019-2020, 46,134 hectares in 2020-2021 and 46,197 hectares in 2021-2022.There are many reason behind the shrinkage of the walnut produce which include absence of scientific intervention , imposition of goods and services tax (GST) climate change , population explosion , Intrusion of Californian walnuts in the big cities and drought like conditions . Moreover, long gestation periods of over 15 years to fetch the first crop which is one of the prime factor of declining the production of walnuts .The Government should take steps in order to save walnut and apple industries by introducing High density walnut and apple trees.High quality equipments should be provided to the farmers on Subsidy basis and training camps should be organised by agricultural research institutes and universities.Soil testing should also be done so the viable fruit or crop would be introduced according to the need.There shall be facilitation centres in each district from where the fruits could be transported without any hindrances to other states so that the fruits wouldn’t rot as that of apples and peach in mandis and on the National highways.Government should also reverse the decision of GST and there should be diversified export oriented strategies.Land laws should be introduced in favour of farmer’s but not against them.More schemes like PM kisanYojina should be introduced which would benefit the people confined to the Agrarian activities.Government need to save the glory of the kashmir by inducing different varieties and high quality grafted plants to save the sinking fruit and walnut Industry which is the main source of the livelihood of the people.
(-The author is pursuing an m.s.c in Zoology, Indian occupied kashmir.Hetweets@peermohdamir. He can be reached at ehsaanamy133@gmail.com)
