Suffering jolts

The Horticulture industry of Kashmir has suffered a series of jolts especially after the abrogation of article 370 as the transport sector was also disrupted here and the growers could not send out their produce to different markets.

The latest threat to the Kashmir apple has emerged from Iran as on a daily basis in different markets of Delhi truck loads of apples from Iran are first sent to Afghanistan and from Afghanistan to Delhi.

In order to avoid paying the taxes, Iranian traders are sending their apples illegally via Afghanistan and it has hit the Kashmir apple industry very hard in the recent past.

Even after the traders dealing with apples from Kashmir have appealed to the government to intervene, truck loads are coming daily to Delhi from Afghanistan forcing the traders from Kashmir to keep their produce in the cold storages.

In a letter to vice-chairman Delhi Agricultural Marketing Board, the Kashmir Valley Fruit Growers, Dealers Union, recently asked for restricting entry and sale of imported apples from Iran through Afghanistan. In this letter, it has been explained how Kashmir apple is suffering and the authorities are trying to look the other way.

Such attitude of the government wings is totally in contrast to the claims of the central government and the JK administration that they are trying their best that the Kashmir apple gets better prices in the market especially in New Delhi.