Valley apples too await the healing touch

Though the Valley’s largest industry, it drastically lags behind in both infrastructure and investment. Farmers say almost four lakh tonnes of apples are spoiled by scab each season.

One remedy, say apple breeders, could be the introduction of scab-resistant varieties. Two varieties—Shireen and Firdous—evolved by Professor Kamal Farooqui, an expert on cultivating fruit trees at the Sher-e-Kashmir University of Agricultural Science, were approved for release in 2000 but are still not available to farmers.

Yaqoob and 400 other agitated growers, who met in Baramulla, accuse the government of deliberately keeping new scab-resistant apple varieties off the market in order to buoy the fungicide industry.

‘‘We have not seen any scab-resistant varieties,’’ complains Yaqoob, who farms five hectares of land at Wagoora in Baramulla, the top-producing apple district in Kashmir. ‘‘We go to our orchards, plant trees, feed them with our souls, with love, affection and money. But we are sufferers because of the government,’’ he says.

But B R Kundal, Commissioner Secretary of Agriculture, denies the very existence of the disease. ‘‘Scab is absolutely under control,’’ he says. ‘‘There is not a one per cent incident of scab in J&K.’’

The anger and exasperation, however, overflows at the recent Fruit Growers Association meet in Baramulla. ‘‘Last year, 40 per cent of my fruit was affected by scab due to non-availability of good fungicides and insecticides,’’ says Yaroob.

Another apple grower, Ghulam Hassan Bhat, who owns one of the 60,000 orchards across Baramulla, blames the government for failing to address their needs. ‘‘The common grower has always been neglected and deprived of any sort of help,’’ he says.

Scab (Venturia inaequalis), a brown, cork-like fungus, was first discovered here in 1930 and controlled. A vast outbreak in 1973 followed, affecting apples ever since. Contrary to Kundal’s assessment, the Horticulture department’s July 2004 pest and disease report reveals a 2.17 per cent incidence of scab across Kashmir.

Pomologist Farooqui says his work was in response to this endemic scab infestation and the massive use of harmful fungicides. The government did approve two of his varieties but did nothing to promote them, he adds.

‘‘I found a solution. Now it’s the responsibility of the government. They must utilise this research,’’ says Farooqui.

Given that 66 per cent of cultivated fruit crops in J&K are apples, he says it’s an environmental risk to rely solely on fungicides to curb scab. In fact, research in United States shows that the use of fungicide to remove one pathogen may cause other pathogens to grow. And the environmental effects of fungicide have never been studied here.

Fungicides don’t work anyway, complain the apple growers, who blame a market flooded with spurious blends. ‘‘The government says the fungicides and pesticides are OK,’’ said 38-year-old grower G M Bhat of Pachar village near Baramulla. ‘‘But when we spray, it doesn’t work.’’

This is due to incorrect use and poor training, says Altaf Bukhari, proprietor of FIL Industries Ltd, the largest manufacturer of fungicides and pesticides in J&K. ‘‘Scab is not a major disease now,’’ he says and attributes its decline to fungicides. The proof, says Bukhari, who is also the largest apple producer in J-K, is flagging fungicide sales—from Rs 100 crore eight years ago across the state to Rs 50 crore today.

Dr G S Naqash, Director of Horticulture says there is no record of adulterated fungicides in the state. ‘‘We haven’t had any complaints,’’ says Naqash. He says his department conducts five tests every year and the latest report found no evidence of adulteration.

But Ghulam Rasool Bhat, president of JK Fruit and Vegetable Growers Association, blames the fungicide industry for blocking entry of scab-resistant apple trees. ‘‘They’re not allowing the university to introduce scab-free varieties in the valley. Because they know they’ll face losses,’’ he says.

Back in Baramulla, growers agree they need more education but also more recognition of the huge contribution they make to J-K’s economy. Dejection has replaced pride in their chosen livelihood. ‘‘Our fruit is famous in the world,’’ says one farmer. Another corrects, ‘‘was famous.’’