Kashmir’s Apple Belt Devastated as Hailstorms Ravage Orchards Across Valley
Growers Report Losses Running Into Crores; KVFGCDU Demands Crop Insurance, Revival of MIS and Special Relief Package
Our Special Correspondent
Srinagar: Successive hailstorms accompanied by strong winds have caused widespread devastation to Kashmir’s horticulture sector, leaving apple growers staring at massive financial losses and an uncertain season ahead.
Large swathes of orchards across north, central and south Kashmir were battered by intense hailstorms over the past few days, damaging tender fruit and flowering trees at a crucial stage of the season. Growers said the destruction has dealt a severe blow to the Valley’s economy, which heavily depends on horticulture and sustains lakhs of families.
President of the Kashmir Valley Fruit Growers Cum Dealers Union (KVFGCDU), Bashir Ahmad Basheer, said the worst-hit areas include Tangmarg, Pattan, Wagura, Kreeri, Rafiabad, Baramulla and Bandipora in north Kashmir, besides the Kangan belt in central Kashmir. He said orchards in Shopian and Kulgam districts of south Kashmir had also suffered extensive damage due to similar weather conditions earlier this week.
“The growers have suffered losses worth crores of rupees in these weather vagaries. The intensity of the damage is so severe that the exact assessment cannot be made immediately,” Basheer said.
Fruit growers described the losses as “irreparable,” saying the hailstorms shattered their hopes for a productive harvesting season. Many orchard owners said years of hard work were damaged within minutes as hailstones ripped through apple blossoms and young fruit.
The repeated spells of extreme weather have once again exposed the vulnerability of Kashmir’s horticulture sector, which contributes significantly to the region’s economy. Growers said climate-related disruptions, including untimely rains, hailstorms and fluctuating temperatures, are becoming increasingly frequent and are threatening the sustainability of fruit cultivation in the Valley.
Expressing concern over the absence of adequate safeguards for orchard owners, the KVFGCDU criticised the non-implementation of the Crop Insurance Scheme (CIS) and the continued suspension of the Market Intervention Scheme (MIS), despite repeated demands from the horticulture community.
The Union urged Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha and Chief Minister Omar Abdullah to immediately announce a comprehensive relief and compensation package for affected growers. It also sought the restoration of the MIS and implementation of a dedicated crop insurance mechanism for the horticulture sector.
The growers’ body further demanded that experts from Sher-e-Kashmir University of Agricultural Sciences and Technology and officials from the Horticulture Department be directed to conduct an immediate ground assessment of the damage caused by the recent hailstorms across Kashmir.
