Some economists say Kashmir’s 70% GDP is based on agriculture and horticulture, and the majority of it is from the apple industry. At the same time, this 70% GDP is linked to one reality that is the smooth, uninterrupted road connectivity to the markets in mainland India.

Srinagar-Jammu national highway is one of the most unpredictable routes, subject to frequent closures because of landslides, rockfalls, flooding, or snow. When this road is blocked for even a week, the ripple effects are devastating. Trucks laden with apples stand stranded for days at vulnerable points. By the time the highway reopens, much of the fruit rots in trucks before reaching to markets. Losses run into crores, hitting farmers, traders, and transporters alike. This is not a new story. Each harvest season, growers pray for a stable highway.

The current model of the apple economy is narrow. More than 70% of Kashmiri apples are sent out in raw form to wholesale markets outside the Valley. Very little consumption and processing takes place locally. There are some cold storage units, mostly private, but their capacity is limited compared to the size of the annual harvest.

This over-reliance on selling raw apples has meant that whenever the highway is blocked, growers have no fallback plan. They cannot divert their fruit elsewhere. They cannot store beyond a few weeks. They........

© Greater Kashmir