Himachal farmers want Stokes’ birthday memorialised as Apple Day

Farmers say Stokes’ statue should be installed on the Ridge for his contribution to the hill-state as the seeds of Himachal Pradesh’s ₹6,000-cr fruit economy were planted with the introduction of the Delicious variety in Kotgarh in 1916

Far from the madding crowd, orchardists from across Himachal Pradesh converged in the picturesque suburb of Narkanda, 15km from Kotgarh, the apple bowl of the hill state, on Monday to mark the birthday of Samuel Evans Stokes, later known as Satyanand Stokes, the American missionary who pioneered apple-growing in the state.

Around 100 farmers paid floral tributes to Stokes, who was born on August 16, 1882, at a small statue installed in his remembrance at Himachal Pradesh’s Narkanda, which is 15km from Kotgarh, the apple bowl of the hill state. (HT Photo)

Today, Himachal Pradesh’s fruit economy is pegged at ₹6,000 crore. But it all started with Stokes introducing viable apple cultivation at Barubagh in Kotgarh in 1916. The Delicious variety of apples, which Stokes introduced, is now grown in parts of Kullu, Shimla, Mandi, Sirmaur, Kinnaur, Lahaul and Spiti and Chamba districts.

“Stokes contribution to the hill-state should be immortalised, “ says Subash Kainthla, a Zila Parishad member from Bhutti-Thanedhar ward in Kotgarh, “Stokes’ statue should be installed on the Ridge. If Yashwant Singh Parmar (the first chief minister of Himachal Pradesh) is called the architect of Himachal, then Stokes’ too revolutionised the state’s economy.”

Kainthla was among the 100 farmers paid floral tributes to Stokes, who was born on August 16, 1882, at a small statue installed in his remembrance. A small event was also organised at the Thanedhar panchayat.

“Farmers in the region have demanded that Stokes’ birthday should be commemorated as apple day,” Kainthla said.

Stokes wasn’t the first to introduce apple to the state, but it was his contribution that went a long way in transforming the apple economy. (HT Photo)

The journey from Samuel Evans to Satyanand

A year after the young Christian missionary arrived in Shimla in 1904 to join a leprosy mission, an earthquake ravaged Kangra and killed more than 20,000 people and Stokes walked from village to village, helping the affected. In 1912, he visited Kotgarh and settled there, marrying a local Christian girl, Agnes. Later, he entered Arya Samaj and changed his name to Satyanand.

Inspired by Mahatma Gandhi, he joined the Congress and fought for India’s independence.

Stokes wasn’t the first to introduce apple to the state, but it was his contribution that went a long way in transforming the apple economy. Captain RC Scot of the British army was the first to bring the fruit to the Kullu valley in 1870, but his variety was not viable economically. Stokes’ red, delicious variety was from Louisiana in the US. He planted an apple orchard on his Thanedhar estate in 1919 and taught the techniques to locals.

Apple is the most important fruit crop of Himachal Pradesh, which constitutes about 49% of the total area under fruit crops and about 79% of the total fruit production. (HT photo)

The apple bowl

Apple is the most important fruit crop of Himachal Pradesh, which constitutes about 49% of the total area under fruit crops and about 79% of the total fruit production. The area under apple has increased from 400 hectares in 1950-61 and 1,12,634 hectares in 2017-18.

The area under temperate fruits other than apple has increased from 900 hectares in 1960-61 to 28,369 hectares in 2017-18. The apple economy alone is pegged at ₹2,900 crore.

As many as 450 cultivars (plants propagated through stem cuttings, not via seeds) of apple collected from all over the world, a majority from the United States, Italy, China and New Zealand are grown in seven districts of the state, namely Shimla, Kullu, Sirmaur, Chamba, Mandi, Kinnaur and Lahaul and Spiti.

Last month, actor Kangana Ranaut, who hails from the hill state, had also urged the Himachal government to build a memorial for Stokes.