Suhail Bhat
Srinagar, July 3: Strawberry growers in Kashmir are in quandary for the third consecutive year due to lockdown that has incurred huge losses upon them.
The growers told Excelsior that they continue to face hardships due to official indifference. “We are unable to sell our produce due to lockdown. Our livelihood is dependent on it. We are incurring losses year after year. As strawberries have low shelf life, we have to throw our produce due to lockdown as it cannot reach the market,” said a farmer.
For the fruit industry which had faced economic consequences due to the lockdown which was imposed after the Government read down Article 370 of the Indian constitution on 5th August 2019, the threat of novel coronavirus proved even greater.
Shabir Ahmad, a farmer from Srinagar’s Hazratbal area said that he started strawberry farming five years ago. “Strawberry season starts in April and it has a shelf life of one month. If it is not sold within that period, it will rot”, he said.
He said that during the lockdown period, their produce couldn’t reach the mandi as no transport facilities were given to them by the government. “Now the government has provided us with transport and we are able to sell our produce,” Shabir said, adding that rates of strawberries are very low and they still incur losses.
The Valley produces around 400 metric tons of strawberries and the fruit harvesting coincides with peak tourist season in the Valley which keeps them in demand. For two consecutive years, however, the demand has been an all-time low, forcing growers to sell it at half the prices or throw the crop away.
“We used to get orders from the hotels and barbeque shops which are closed due to pandemic. I did not even get labourer costs in last two year and had to sell it a much lower price,” Manzoor Ahmad, strawberry grower said, adding that their livelihood has been hit hard by the lockdown.
The growers said they are pinning their hopes on the government saying that it should compensate them for the loss caused by pandemic. “We appeal to the government to come to our rescue and provide them with relief,” a grower said.
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