Kashmir apple rates down by 30%, growers seek govt support to curb losses

A bumper apple production in Kashmir this season has failed to cheer up growers as their produce is being sold at nearly 30 per cent lower rates than last year.

Faced with huge losses, apple farmers have now sought government intervention.

The Kashmiri apple hogged the headlines in September after an uproar over frequent disruption in its transportation from the orchards in the valley to markets outside the Union territory, including Azadpur Mandi, Asia's largest wholesale market.

Kashmir produces about 75 per cent of the total apple crop in the country and is considered the backbone of its economy, contributing about 8.2 per cent to Jammu and Kashmir's GDP.

"The rates of apple coming from Kashmir this season are down by about 30 per cent compared to 2021, and there is no doubt the growers are suffering huge losses. It is very difficult for them to overcome the losses without government support," Chamber of Azadpur Fruit and Vegetable Traders president Metha Ram Kriplani told ...