Cherry farmers suffer huge losses as hailstorms damage 60% crop

Srinagar: Fifty-five-year-old Showkat Ahmad Wani was on cloud 9 as his orchards were bursting with cherries.

From spraying quality pesticides to timely usage of manure and fertilizers, he took every measure to ensure good and quality produce this year.

However, the inclement weather and hailstorm last month played havoc and the crop suffered 50 percent damage.

“I own five cherry orchards. The recent hailstorm damaged my entire crop,” he said.

The same ordeal is being narrated by the other farmers from the rest of the districts who said they suffered a huge loss to the cherry crop due to the weather vagaries this season.

Shopian, Ganderbal, Kulgam and Tangmarg, Rafiabad, and Wagoora were the worst hit by hailstorms.

President of North Kashmir Fruit Growers Association Fayaz Ahmad Malik said the growers suffered 60 percent loss due to hailstorms.

“Cherry crop has witnessed large-scale damage due to the hailstorms. We have assessed the losses of the order of 60 percent in the valley. The areas which have been badly hit include Ganderbal, Tangmarg, Shopian, Faridabad, and other south Kashmir areas,” he said.

Following large-scale damage to the crop, Malik said only a limited quantity of the cherry was arriving at valley mandis.

“Compared to the previous years, a limited quantity of cheery is arriving in valley mandis. Due to the huge packaging and shipping costs, the farmers don’t take a risk to ship cherry. We feel that this year very little quantity might be going to outside Kashmir mandis as well,” he said.

There are eight cherry varieties grown in Kashmir: Makhmali, Siya, Mishri, Jaddi, Italy, Dabal, Vishkan, and Stela. Four among the eight varieties -Mishri, Jaddi, Makhmali, and Dabal – have good demand in the market.

Mishri is considered sweeter than other varieties.

Mishri variety, known for its health benefits, was exported to Dubai last year.

According to official figures, the annual production of the stone fruit is around 12,000 metric tonnes, making J&K the largest cherry producer in India.

Kashmir Valley is known for producing 95 percent of India’s cherries. Kashmir annually sends around 3,500-4,000 metric tonnes of cherries to other states of India. Cherry is being cultivated in the region on around 2,800 hectares, which yields an annual turnover of around Rs 130-150 crore.

Pertinently, last week, the horticulture department deputed teams of its officers to assess the damage to cherry and other crops due to the hail storm.

“The report is being prepared. So far the growers have been advised to spray certain pesticides to prevent diseases due to the rainfall and hailstorm,” an official said.