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First-of-its-kind apple tourism to attract tourists to J&K
India’s first-of-its-kind apple tourism will be launched in Sopore town of Baramulla from this autumn
India’s first-of-its-kind apple tourism will be launched in Sopore town of Baramulla from this autumn.
The initiative will be launched by local apple growers along with Pune-based NGO Sarhad. It is aimed to boost tourism besides providing employment opportunities to Kashmiri youth.
Sopore Apple Mandi president Fayaz Ahmad Malik said apple festival will be organised in various cities of Maharashtra in October this year. He appealed to the people of Maharashtra to take part in the festival.
Malik said this could give fillip to the apple industry which is spread almost in every part of Kashmir, especially the rural areas. “This initiative will be help apple growers as well as tour operators,” he added.
Sanjay Nahar, who heads Sarhad, said they have joined hands with local apple growers to boost tourism in Kashmir, focusing on the apple cultivation.
“Apple processing units will be installed in various towns in the Valley. Different varieties of apple products will also be promoted for marketing at international level. This will help generate employment for the local population,” he said, adding that 15 years ago, Sarhad had first introduced the idea of village tourism in Kashmir.
“The NGO will mobilise travel agents, officials from the tourism department and other stakeholders to develop infrastructure for apple tourism. We are hopeful that this exercise will be a success,” Nahar said.
Fayaz, along with apple grower Aadil Malik and other local farmers will initiate apple tourism.
“As part of the initiative, tourists will be escorted in groups to apple orchards across Kashmir from October. They will be able to stay in the orchards and experience different facets of the orchard life,” Aadil said.
Dozens of varieties of apple are grown in Kashmir and lakh of apple boxes are dispatched to different states every year. In Kashmir, the apple season begins in May and lasts till December. During plantation, flowering and harvest, apple orchards present different views that can attract tourists.
As per official records, seven lakh farming families (approximately 35 lakh people) are directly or indirectly associated with the sector. Apple trade contributes to around 8% of the UT’s GDP and the government is trying to increase production by introducing high-density plantations.
