Fear has gripped Kashmiri farmers after the India-New Zealand Free Trade Agreement reportedly proposed to reduce the import tax on foreign apples. Under the agreement, New Zealand will receive limited preferential access to the Indian apple market through a tariff-rate quota. Imports within the quota—starting at 32,500 metric tonnes (MT) and rising to 45,000 MT over six years—will attract a reduced duty of 25 per cent. Shipments beyond this quota will continue to face the full 50 per cent import duty, along with a minimum import price of USD 1.25 per kg. India has retained safeguards such as minimum import prices and seasonal restrictions. However, growers said these safeguards offer little comfort. Farmers fear the move could flood the Indian market with cheaper imported apples during the peak season. The reduced duty will apply from April to August—the peak period when cold-stored Kashmiri apples are sold in the market. Kashmir produces the bulk of India’s apples and supports thousands of livelihoods—from orchardists and packers to transporters and traders. Any prolonged price pressure could have cascading effects across the Valley’s rural economy. The agriculture and allied sectors account for more than 78 percent of the Union Territory’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP), providing livelihood to over 13 lakh families. More than 344,696 hectares of land are under horticultural cultivation. Fresh fruit cultivation spans 252,257 hectares, while dry fruit orchards cover 92,438 hectares. The horticulture sector is the only hope since its revenue percolates to the lowest denominator of society. Tourism and horticulture are the mainstay of Kashmir’s economy, and both are going through hard times. Horticulture suffers a double whammy in Kashmir. Unseasonal rains, hailstorms, and floods, coupled with highway blues, have been wreaking havoc on Kashmir’s horticulture. Ninety percent of horticulturists in Kashmir are marginal growers, and they suffer the most due to the natural vagaries. With insurers refusing to bring horticulture under the crop insurance scheme, it is the farmers who bear the brunt. On top of it, the free market economy and free flow of cheaper varieties of apples will sound the death knell to the sector. The Jammu and Kashmir government must take up the issue with the central government and impose adequate safeguards to protect the interests of the farmers. Our growers have high hopes with Prime Minister Narender Modi, Union Home Minister Amit Shah, Agriculture Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan, Commerce Minister Piyush Goyal, Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha, and Chief Minister Omar Abdullah that they will come to their rescue and save the horticulture industry from falling apart. The Omar Abdullah government also needs to take measures at the local level to safeguard the industry. The process of bringing the horticulture sector under crop insurance cover must be fast-tracked so that farmers’ interests are secured.