Srinagar: Kashmir’s fruit industry is reeling under massive losses as the continued closure of the Srinagar-Jammu National Highway has disrupted transportation of produce during the peak harvest season.
President of Sopore Fruit Mandi, Fayaz Ahmad Malik, on Monday said that traders and fruit growers have suffered losses worth over Rs 400 crore in just over a week of the highway’s closure.
“Over 250 trucks are presently stuck at Sopore Mandi. Besides, trucks laden with fruits are stranded in other mandis and along the Srinagar-Jammu National Highway,” Malik told KINS.
The Srinagar-Jammu National Highway is the Valley’s only all-weather surface link with the rest of the country. Its repeated closures due to landslides and inclement weather have often disrupted supplies, but Malik said the present situation has been particularly devastating for the horticulture sector, the backbone of Kashmir’s economy.
“Traders and fruit growers have already suffered losses of Rs 400 crore, and the figure is only rising. This is the peak season, and any delay in transportation reduces the fruit’s market value,” he said.
According to Malik, while authorities have been allowing a limited number of small trucks through the alternative Mughal Road, the arrangement is proving insufficient.
“Apples and other fruits are exported in bulk through big trucks which can ply only on the Srinagar-Jammu Highway. With hundreds of loaded trucks stuck, fruits are deteriorating, forcing traders to sell at throwaway prices,” he said.
Growers and traders have appealed to the administration to ensure early restoration of the highway to prevent further damage to the sector. “The horticulture industry sustains lakhs of families in Kashmir. If such disruptions continue unchecked, the entire chain—from growers to traders—will be pushed into crisis,” Malik cautioned.
The Valley’s apple harvest, which begins in late August and continues through October, contributes nearly 8 percent to Jammu and Kashmir’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP). Prolonged disruptions, stakeholders fear, could have long-term implications on both livelihoods and the region’s economy. (KINS)
