By Vishal Gulati, IANS,
Shimla : Poor rainfall this monsoon and poorer snowfall last winter have hit apple production in Himachal Pradesh. But the farmers are not complaining, as the fruit’s prices are shooting north.
Every day, trucks carrying hundreds of apple-filled crates from Shimla, Kullu, Mandi and Chamba districts head for Chandigarh, Delhi, Mumbai, Ahmedabad, Bangalore and Lucknow.
But, say officials, the total production of around 18 million crates of 25 kilograms each this season will be considerably less than last year’s 26 million crates. They say this is due to lack of moisture in the soil, as there was very poor snowfall last winter and the monsoon this year has also brought scanty rainfall so far.
“The apple season, though much delayed, has finally begun. The fruit has started reaching across the country and is fetching record prices,” state horticulture director Gurdev Singh told IANS.
“This year, a 25-kilo box of superior varieties of apples like Red Chief and Super Chief is being sold at Rs.2,000-Rs.2,200 in Delhi, while Royal Delicious is fetching Rs.1,600-Rs.1,700,” Singh said.
According to him, this is almost double last year’s rates.
Horticulture Minister Narender Bragta said 300,000 boxes of apples have been transported out of the state so far.
During this period last year, 2.5 million boxes had been despatched.
“We have reports of bad harvest in various areas, but the farmers are getting record prices, which will definitely compensate their losses,” the minister said.
Pratap Chauhan, a farmer based at Kotkhai in upper Shimla, said apple production this season has declined almost 50 percent, but he is not complaining. For, he said, the shortfall has made his business profitable.
“These days apples are selling like hot cakes. We got Rs.1,800 per box for Royal Delicious, whereas it was just Rs.1,100 last year,” Chauhan said.
Varinder Sharma, an apple farmer from Oddi village in Shimla district, has sold apples for Rs.400,000 this year as compared to Rs.250,000 earned last year.
“This time, there is no glut of apples. So the demand has exceeded supply, which has made the farmer a king. The weather vagaries turned out to be a blessing for us,” the farmer said.
A large number of apple traders have been camping in apple growing belts for the past week to procure apples directly from farmers.
Said Hazi Mohd Saddiq, a trader from Sikar in Rajasthan: “We are procuring 1,000 to 1,500 boxes of high quality apples daily. We are sending these boxes to various cities in Rajasthan, where the demand is quite high.”
Himachal Pradesh is one of India’s major apple-producing regions, with more than 90 percent of the produce going to the domestic market.
The area under the apple crop has increased to 94,726 hectares in 2007-08 from 400 hectares in 1960-61.
The state’s apple economy is pegged around Rs.1,500 crore, with Shimla, Kullu, Mandi, Lahaul and Spiti, Kinnaur and Chamba districts being the hubs.
Besides apple, other fruits like pears, peaches, cherries, apricots, kiwi, strawberry, olive, almonds and plums are the major commercial crops of the state.
(Vishal Gulati can be contacted at [email protected])