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J&K horticulture seeks to end ban on axing old walnut trees
Walnut kernels produced in Kashmir are known for their quality and the organic fruit is in great demand across the globe
The horticulture department has written to the Jammu and Kashmir administration to end the ban on axing old walnut trees in order to increase plantation of hybrid quality of the fruit.
Walnut kernels produced in Kashmir are known for their quality and the organic fruit is in great demand across the globe.
Horticulture department director general Ajaz Bhat said he has written to the administration tol allow axing of old walnut trees. “Time has changed now and people want to plant hybrid varieties of the walnut which has good yield and doesn’t occupy much space, but the law is the biggest hindrance,” he said.
A reply from the administration is awaited. “Unless the government brings another law or cancels the old one, people can’t axe or go for the pruning of these trees. I will again write to the authorities to change the law for the sake of the growers.”
To fell the old walnut trees, growers have to seek permission from the Kashmir divisional commissioner which takes years. “I had suggested making the process easy. The UT administration should to take a decision.”
Over 95% of the land under organic fruit cultivation grows walnut. As much as 1.85 lakh tonne of fruit is produced in Kashmir and 85,000 tonne in the Jammu region. Walnut is considered the only organic fruit which generates more than ₹500 crore as revenue.
Anantnag and Kupwara top the state in walnut cultivation with 11,939 and 8,797 hectares under the fruit. Over the past 40 years, the state has seen an astronomical rise in walnut production from 10,500 tonne to more than 2.7 lakh tonne.
Officials say that five to six varieties of walnuts — Suleman, Hamdan, Central Institute of Temperate Horticulture (CITH) 1, 2, 3, 4 and 5 — are produced in different parts of Kashmir nurseries and given to growers for high yield.
“The emphasis is to produce more varieties with better yield. We have released more than five to six new varieties of walnuts for J&K and witnessed better production in the past few years,” said Dr Imtiaz an expert from Sher-e-Kashmir University of Agricultural Sciences & Technology (SKUAST).
As per the horticulture department, over 85,000 hectares are under walnut cultivation and most of the trees are very old varieties.
“The walnut trees in my compound have become a nuisance and threat to my property. I can neither axe them nor replace them with new varieties. I have tried to seek permission, but all in vain,” said Surjeet Singh a resident of Baramulla.
A senior officer of department said strict laws give rise to corruption. “When the laws are too tough, people go for unfair means to axe or prune the walnut trees.”
