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Floods consume Kashmiri apple Growers lose Rs 1000 Cr 9/21/2014 11:47:16 PM Syed Tahir Bukhari BARAMULLA, Sept 21: Fruit growers curse their stars as floods have washed out apple crop leaving a devastating impact on growers in north Kashmir's Baramulla District, they fear the year will be disastrous of business, as the best varieties of Kashmiri apples that were about to hit markets by end of this year were destroyed. According to sources that the worst-hit districts of Baramulla, Kupwara and Sopore are the largest producers of apples and extensive damage took place here. Mohmmad Aslam Bhat, a fruit grower told Early Times, "Sopore fruit market is Asia's second largest fruit market and employs thousands of farmers and people related to horticulture. The apple Mandi is considered to be the backbone of Kashmir's economy and the majority of small fruit growers sell their fruits here to agents. However, this year supply of apple fruit will be less and it will be costlier than other fruits in other parts of the country." According to Manzoor Ahmad, Horticulture official from District Baramulla, he said that, "Horticultural production of the state contributes about 50-60 per cent of the Rs 2,000 crore agricultural production of the state involving almost 30 lakh people. Apple production accounts for 80 per cent by value of the state's horticultural output. Another fruit grower Mushtaq Ahmad Mir said that, "Apple is the mainstay of Kashmir's economy with a turnover of more than thousand crore a year and its production in the state has reached about 1.5 million metric tons annually. It also employs thousands of people who are directly and indirectly associated with this trade. Orchards in Kashmir Valley once known as the fruit bowl of India are full of fragrant apples but growers fear the disastrous year of business. Most families in Sopore in north Kashmir and Shopian in the south are involved in the cultivation of the fruit that flourishes in the hilly environment, Mir adds. Ashiq Ahmad Wani fruit grower from Pattan said that, "the devastating floods in Jammu and Kashmir have damaged the best varieties of Kashmiri apples that were about to hit markets by end of this year. Though apple is the major fruit grown in Kashmir, especially in Sopore in north and Shopian in south Kashmir, other fruits like apricots, pears and cherry are also grown on a large scale, he said.   Share This News with Your Friends on Social Network     Comment on this Story

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