Valley's Woe: Rotting Fruit, Shuttered Shops

Undeclared curfews and self-imposed shutdowns have blighted harvest

- AM Jigeesh

At the peak of the apple-pear apricot season in Kashmir, the smell of rotting fruit and sight of downed shutters at the local mandis belie the official claim that the fruits in the Valley have sold at a record high.

The State administration has maintained that fruits such as apple and peach are being transported freely outside the State. “Against 89,000 tonnes last year, around 1.20 lakh tonnes have been moved out till now and both the divisional and district administrations have been directed to coordinate with producers for harvesting and smooth transportation,” a government statement said. “Transportation of products is increasing with 300 trucks plying on a daily basis. Over 1.5 lt of produce has been sent to various sale points outside of the Valley,” the administration tweeted on Tuesday.

And yet, a visit to the local mandis in the Valley last week depicted an entirely different picture.

Owing to the raids by security agencies in the market and mandis, no trader or worker was willing to be identified but readily shared their problems.