BJP eyes apple bowl

For years, the apple growers of Himachal Pradesh have kept their biggest slice of votes for the Congress. This year, after a good crop season...

For years, the apple growers of Himachal Pradesh have kept their biggest slice of votes for the Congress. This year, after a good crop season, it would be fair to assume that the party will reap another bumper harvest8212;in the form of votes. But the party knows it8217;s too early to assume.

For years, the powerful apple lobby8212;a politically pampered lot8212;has been calling the shots in the state8217;s politics. Most Congress chief ministers and party stalwarts like the late Thakur Ram Lal, Virbhadra Singh and Vidya Stokes come from the apple belt, which has never allowed the BJP to gain a foothold here.

But things have been changing over the last three years in the apple belt, which runs through six districts of Himachal Pradesh, including Kullu, Mandi, Sirmaur, Solan, Kinnaur and Shimla. In the last assembly elections, two BJP leaders8212; Rohru WHAT who fought against Chief Minister Virbhadra Singh and Jubbal-Kotkhai pitted against Congress8217;s Thakur Ram Lal8212; secured 30 to 37 per cent of the votes.

The reason for this shift of allegiance, or rather drop in Congress support, has to do with subsidies for apple farmers. The government8217;s subsidy policy, which was introduced by earlier Congress governments, is slowly losing its relevance. That8217;s because farmers are no more dependant on the government to offer them minimum support prices when they can sell directly to big retail chains like Gujarat based Adani group and Reliance. With apple growers financially secure, their concern isn8217;t subsidies but development-and that8217;s where the Congress is slipping.

8220;Farmers are biggest beneficiaries of the new marketing options. The companies pay better rates. This saves growers from being exploited by commission agents and transporters,8221; said Lekh Ram Chauhan, an orchard owner and president of the fruit growers8217; body.

The sentiment was not the same in 1990 when Shanta Kumar, a BJP chief minister, slashed the support price for apples just few months after he came to power. The apple growers reacted sharply and the BJP became unpopular among the apple growers. But things are changing.

Narinder Bragta, who was the horticulture minister in the BJP government, said the feeling of being 8220;anti-apple growers8221; has been neutralised. 8220;The government can8217;t give up its role of creating better infrastructure and providing technical support,8221; he said.