Mubashir Bukhari
Srinagar (NVI): The apple growers in Kashmir are disappointed by the amount of compensation they have received for damage to their crops due to untimely snowfall in November last year.
The Jammu and Kashmir administration has decided to pay relief of Rs 2,000 to the apple growers under the National Disaster Relief Fund (NDRF) norms. However, the apple farmers who faced crop losses due to untimely snowfall say that the amount is not just enough.
On November 7 last year, Kashmir received untimely heavy snowfall which damaged the orchards and the growers had to suffer around 90 per cent losses.
Besides, the Kashmir Valley Fruit Growers cum Dealers Union (KVFG), an umbrella body of all fruit associations of Kashmir said that the minimum losses of the fruit orchards were to the tune of Rs 5,000 crore. “Apple orchards have suffered about 90 per cent damages. It would take at least 15 years for growers to find replacement for uprooted trees,” KVFG President Bashir Ahmad Basheer said.
According to the Horticulture Department, every farmer will get Rs 2,000 for every ‘kanal’ (unit) of land.
“As per the norms of NDRF, every farmer will be provided a minimum of Rs 2,000. Those who feel that the remuneration is not enough will get the remaining sum in different phases,” the officials of the Horticulture Department said.
But the growers termed the compensation as a “joke” for them.
North Kashmir Fruit Growers and Dealers Association, Fayaz Ahmad Malik said that government has done an assessment of the losses despite that; they have made fun of us. “This amount won’t help any grower at all. The government should have paid at least Rs 5,000 for every affected plant,” he said.
Another person from south Kashmir said that after the abrogation of Article 370, they suffered huge losses because the maximum percentage of apple couldn’t be sent to other parts of the country.
“Secondly, untimely snowfall destroyed the back of our earnings. Rs 1,000 is nothing to us,” said Abdul Rahim, a fruit grower from Shopian.
Deputy Director of Horticulture department, Javed Ahmad Bhat said, “The amount is kind of a relief not compensation. We are doing our best to ensure overall compensation to the affected farmers.”
The horticulture sector is the main contributor of Jammu and Kashmir economy on which more than 7 lakh families are dependent for their livelihood.
