E-Paper
NAFED tries to provide a lifeline to Kashmir’s apple growers.
NAFED move to buy all three grades of apple at higher price may provide a lifeline to apple growers in Kashmir. Apple cultivation is the mainstay of Kashmir’s economy, and has been hit due to the clampdown post abrogation of the state’s special status
The National Agricultural Cooperative Marketing Federation of India Ltd.(NAFED) move to buy all three grades of apple at higher price may provide a lifeline to apple growers in Kashmir.
Srinagar district magistrate Shahid Choudhary in a tweet on Wednesday said, “Exciting news for apple growers. The NAFED is set to buy in all three grades at an impressive price. Every single fruit will bring in greater value, enhanced income at no transportation hassles.”
Apple cultivation is the mainstay of Kashmir’s economy with revenue of around ₹1,200 crore a year, and has been hit due to the clampdown post abrogation of the state’s special status guaranteed under Article 370 of the Constitution.
With Himachal Pradesh and Kashmir accounting for three-quarters of India’s apple crop, the proposed J&K’s first investor summit to be held is also expected to focus on apple cultivation.
The announcement comes in the backdrop of a litmus test for Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s administration as it begins to restore normalcy in the region against the backdrop of unrest in the valley. Nafed is the central agency assigned to procure directly from farmers and is expected to play a pivotal role in helping double farmers’ income by 2022.
The move is aimed at helping farmers, and comes in the backdrop of New Delhi imposing long-pending retaliatory tariffs on 29 US products. Key items imported by India from the US include almond and fresh apples worth $645 million and $165 million, respectively.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi-led Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), having tested waters during the first term at office in 2014-19, made Articles 370 and 35A major poll planks in the recently concluded Lok Sabha elections. Abolishing Article 370 has been on the BJP’s agenda for long.
This also comes at a time when Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s second term in office has been clouded by the economic slowdown, tepid job growth and decelerating exports. Asia’s third largest economy expanded at 5% in the June quarter, its slowest pace in more than six years, official data showed last week.
Tensions between India and Pakistan have also spiked after India abrogated provisions of Article 370 of the Constitution to revoke Jammu and Kashmir’s special status and bifurcated it into two Union Territories.
