The Kashmir Pulse

SRINAGAR — A remarkable trend is unfolding in Kashmir with farmers and horticulturists embracing exotic apple plant varieties over traditional ones. As per the news agency KNO, this surge in interest is reshaping the agricultural landscape of the region, known for its traditional apple cultivation.

In recent years, there has been a noticeable shift towards cultivating exotic varieties of apples, spurred by changing consumer preferences and evolving market dynamics.

Varieties including Red Velox, Pink Lady, Redlum Gala, Scarlet II, Golden Delicious and Jeromine are ruling the roost in Kashmir these days. These varieties, known for their distinctive flavours, textures, and extended shelf life, are increasingly finding favour among consumers both domestically and internationally.

Aarif Bhat, a progressive farmer from Baramulla district, shares his experience, "I have been cultivating traditional apple varieties for decades, but I decided to diversify my orchard by introducing exotic varieties. The response has been overwhelming, with buyers showing great interest in these apples."

The shift towards exotic apple varieties is not only driven by consumer demand but also by economic factors. Farmers are recognizing the potential for higher returns associated with cultivating these premium varieties.

“A box of Red Velox apples costs almost 30 per cent more than the traditional variety. So, growers are increasingly shifting from traditional to exotic varieties to make more money,” said Mohammad Shahbaz, an apple dealer.

As such various entrepreneurs have emerged in the valley who grow the nurseries of such varieties to sell to growers during the season.

“We grow varieties of apple plants in the nursery. For the last five years, we have been associated with the farming of these varieties and growers come from various districts to buy saplings from our nursery,” said Abdul Quyoom Bhat, an entrepreneur.

Pertinently, the government too is encouraging and promoting the high-density apple plantation in Kashmir to grow the income of farmers.

The Department of Horticulture has set a target to bring 5500 hectares of land under the Modified High-Density Plantation Scheme in Jammu and Kashmir by 2026.

According to government figures, Kashmir exports more than 20 lakh metric tonnes of apples every year, and the horticulture industry is pegged to be worth around 9,000 to 10,000 crore including the employment it generates. Kashmir produces 75 per cent of the total apple production in the country.

SRINAGAR — The Jammu and Kashmir Government has announced the appointment of Chaman Lal Sharma as Director of Horticulture for Jammu and Zahoor Ahmad Bhat as Director of Horticulture for Kashmir. Additionally, Chandrashekhar Bharti has been appointed as Principal Secretary to the Government, Home Department.

According to an order, Chaman Lal Sharma, currently serving as Joint Director of the Horticulture Department, will assume the role of Director of Horticulture for Jammu. Similarly, Zahoor Ahmad Bhat, also a Joint Director in the Horticulture Department, will take on the position of Director of Horticulture for Kashmir. Both appointments are effective immediately.

"The above arrangement shall be purely temporary in nature to meet the functional requirements of the department and will not entitle the officers for any claim of promotion or other benefits from the date they hold the charge of the post," the order states.

Furthermore, Chandrashekhar Bharti, an IAS officer of the AGMUT cadre from the 1996 batch, has been appointed as Principal Secretary to the Government, Home Department, with immediate effect.

"In the interest of administration, Shri Chandrashekhar Bharti, IAS (AGMUT:1996), awaiting orders of adjustment, is posted as Principal Secretary to the Government, Home Department with immediate effect," the order reads.

PULWAMA — In south Kashmir’s Pulwama district, where apples and other fruits are cultivated on a large scale, there are thousands of canals in the district where only almonds are cultivated. The people of these areas are associated with almond cultivation for centuries. But due to the lack of attention by the Horticulture department, almond cultivation is on the verge of decline.

Locals from the district said that nobody from the authorities is willing to accept the contribution of this industry. As a result, the almond industry is vanishing from the map of Jammu and Kashmir.

“Wild animals have created havoc, damaged all these almond trees, but nobody cares and comes forward,” said a local from Trichal village of the south Kashmir district. "Instead of focusing on this industry, different types of plants are introduced."

The local residents from Newa, Parigam, Zadoora and Rahmoo said that wild animals have completely damaged their almond trees. “This land is good for almond cultivation and a little bit of attention from the government can flourish this industry,” said Abdul Gagar.

The locals accused the Horticulture department of negligence, saying not a single officer visited these villages where the almond industry can flourish.

SRINAGAR — In view of the snow forecast by the Indian Meteorological Department Srinagar for the first week of November, the Horticulture Department Kashmir on Tuesday issued an advisory for the orchardists in order to prevent any damage to the fruit trees due to possible heavy rains and snowfall.

"In case of any such precipitation, the unharvested fruit should be immediately harvested and stored properly for packaging and subsequent sale as has already been published in the previous advisory, dated 16-10-2022," the advisory said.

It added, "Start and expedite the pruning of fruit trees in order to lower the load of fruit trees and reduce the size of out-spreading branches which are more prone to snow damage. Shake trees to remove snow immediately from the branches after the snowfall to prevent their bending and subsequent damage."

"If the fruit trees are tilted, reduce the canopy load by pruning, and provide proper support. If the trees get partially uprooted, slowly pull back the trees to the original position after support/staking to the main trunk to prevent further fall/ movement," the advisory said.

Ir went on to state that if the top portion of the tree breaks, give the damaged branches an oblique cut 2-3 inches below the broken point and apply Bordeaux mixture/Chaubatia paste on the cut surface. However, if any scaffold branch breaks and the bark is still intact, after heavy pruning, bring the branch to its original position by tying it with a rope and/or bolting or using nails. "Ensure that the union remains tight and apply Bordeaux/Chaubatia paste on the cut surface."

The advisory also said that if the main trunk splits into two or three parts, it can be treated the same way as has been advised for broken branches. "If roots get exposed, cover the roots back with soil to avoid desiccation and damage."

SRINAGAR — Despite being high in produce, Kashmir’s walnut is gasping for breath and survival as the intrusion of the Californian walnut breed in Indian cities has cast a shadow on the Valley’s indigenous walnut produce and brought down its price.

Another reason which has left the walnut growers of Kashmir worried is climate change, population expansion, and the imposition of GST and VAT.

Official figures available with the news agency KNO 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.

The absence of scientific intervention and many other factors hit Kashmir's walnut industry badly with growers looking for alternative crops like apple plantations to earn a livelihood.

Talking to KNO, Director Horticulture Ghulam Rasool Mir said that 13 nurseries of high-density walnut trees will be established this year in Kashmir. “There is a subsidy of 7.5 lakh per hectare for producing walnuts. We are also creating mass awareness to raise the export figure,” he said.

He added, “We are reaching out to walnut growers across the Valley and every step to restore the glory of Kashmiri walnuts is being taken.”

Akhtar Hussain Malik, a noted Botanist at Kashmir University told KNO that there are multiple reasons responsible for the declining demand and quality of Kashmiri walnuts.

“Intrusion of Californian walnuts in Indian cities and their less price has cast a shadow on Kashmir’s walnut produce. The price of walnuts from Kashmir has significantly dipped as Californian walnuts are sold in Indian markets,” Malik said and added that other reasons include climate change, population explosion and drought-like conditions.

President of Dry-fruit Growers Association Kashmir, Bahadur Khan said that imposition of Goods and Services Tax/VAT has taken a serious toll on walnut export in Kashmir.

“The Goods and Services Tax (GST) announced by the Union government also spelt problems for Kashmir’s walnut growers. In July 2017, walnuts were first put under the 12 per cent tax slab but later added 5 per cent bracket after a show of strong resentment by growers,” he said.

Khan said that 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,” he said, adding that there is a need for a market intervention scheme to save the walnut industry from sinking.

SRINAGAR — Despite Pulwama being a hub of vegetable and fruit production in Kashmir, the Fruit Mandi Pulwama lacks basic facilities, causing immense hardships to fruit growers, traders and transporters during the peak harvesting season.

Scores of fruit growers on Monday protested against the lack of basic amenities in the fruit market. While expressing their resentment against the Horticulture Planning and Marketing Department, they said that the Fruit Mandi Pulwama has been turned into a desert as the main roads are yet to be macadamized and fencing is awaiting completion for two years.

"Fruit Mandi is our backbone and we are dependent on it. The government needs to act accordingly to strengthen it," said Mohd Ramzan, a trader at Fruit Mandi Pulwama.

Apart from basic facilities, growers added that hundreds of license holders whose licenses have not yet been renewed. “Since the market was established here, our licenses used to get renewed every year. However, this year growers are deeply concerned here as licenses are yet to be renewed,” they added.

“Though the matter was brought to the notice of the concerned authorities, however, no action has been taken,” they said.

The growers appealed to Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha to intervene and ensure the availability of all basic facilities in the Mandi.

“If the administration is not going to take steps for our demands, we have to choose other ways to meet our demands. We are traders, we don’t believe in violence, we are citizens of India, we are taxpaying citizens, why are we being ignored. We request the administration to fulfil our demand at the earliest so that we can continue our business without hindrances,” they said.