It seems the happiness of fruit growers in the state is short-lived. The Valley got good rainfall and subsequently a good crop, but it failed to help growers fetch handsome money for apples. Even high yield failed to save the growers from incurring financial losses within and outside the state markets. Contrary to previous year’s apple production, this year the yield was reasonably good. This year, the production has already surpassed 12 lakh metric tons.However, when it comes to returns, the growers are not amused. The rates of different varieties of apples plummet,thus, giving sleepless nights to the growers. “This year, we were hopeful that things will be good for the apple trade especially for the growers,” said Ghulam Nabi Khan, who is one of the leading fruit growers in the Valley. “Despite good crop, we could not get our money back as the prices of apples have gone down considerably.” Another grower, Mohammad Maqbool Mir puts different reasons for low prices. “A box of apples that cost Rs 200 is only sold at 210 and 220 and some times at Rs 150. Instead of making profits, we make losses,” he lamented. “What will be our fate if there is a bad crop next year? We will have no option but to leave this trade forever.” Mir also blames the government for not doing enough for the growers especially at a time when the rates have headed southwards. “We always become the victim of the bad policies of the government and the commission agents,” he said. Horticulture is Kashmir’s mainstay industry after tourism as around ten lakh families in the Valley are directly or indirectly dependent on the fruit trade. However, a senior official in Horticulture department blames the growers for the low prices. “They (growers) always compromise on the quality of apples and never pay attention to the quality of the fruit. The quality compromise is the main reason why our fruit fetches very less rates in the market,” said Horticulture deputy director adding that in the age of competition when we have different types of apples available in mandis we will have to produce good crops. “We have already started a programme to educate growers about the quality factor,” he said. To improve the quality of the fruit, the J-K government even distributed cardboard boxes amongst the growers, however, that too failed to help growers in getting good yield.
