‘Open Mughal road for to and fro apple transportation’
Stressing for allowing to and fro movement of fruit trucks through Mughal road, Jammu and Kashmir Kisan Tehreek (JKKT) has demanded a hassle-free and affordable transportation of fruit from Kashmir to other parts of the country.
In its working committee meeting held in Anantnag today, Ghulam Nabi Malik General Secretary JKKT said that a hassle-free movement of fruit laden trucks to and from Kashmir to other parts of the country in view of the heavy traffic on Srinagar-Jammu highway (NH-1) via Mughal road be allowed for the economic interests of the fruit industry.
He urged the government to ensure affordable transportation of the fruit during peak season commencing this month. “The horticulture is the mainstay of States’ economy and requisite measures are necessitated for fetching better returns of fruit especially apple produce,” Malik said while demanding that there should not be any delay to arrange truck fleets on reasonable rates during the peak season.
“The haggling on freight charges and excessive commission from the fruit traders and transporters from outside the State is against the interests of farmers and orchardists of Kashmir,” Malik said while expressing a deep concern over the depressing scenario of horticulture in Kashmir.
Malik said that apple production is the backbone of economy in Kashmir and it is the fruit industry which sustained Kashmir even during the most trying circumstances during last over two decades.
“Unfortunately the department of horticulture and the associated institutions are not paying adequate attention to the problems faced by this vital sector. For a number of years the total production has been decreasing to an alarming level, diseases have gone out of control, prices of fertilizers and needful chemicals have become unaffordable and their quality has dwindled.”
While reiterating his demand for providing insurance cover to the cultivators and their crops and fruits to insulate them from contingency losses, Malik stressed for quality control of the fertilizers and chemicals.
He said fruit industry generates livelihood for thousands of unemployed youth and the facilities like cold storage, grading and marketing be provided to them besides improving irrigation facilities. He demanded re-building of the damaged cold storage and grading centres at various places in South Kashmir.
