Gala Mast apples during its harvesting at an orchard, at Handwara in Kupwara district of North Kashmir.
Credit: PTI Photo
Srinagar: Apple and walnut growers in Kashmir are growing increasingly concerned after the Trump administration imposed an additional 27 per cent import duty on Indian goods, citing New Delhi’s high tariffs on US products.
The new tariffs have raised fears that India may be pressured to lower its own import duties on items like apples and walnuts in order to secure a favorable trade deal with the United States, a move that could severely impact Kashmir’s horticulture industry.
Lowered import duties would make American apples and walnuts much cheaper in India, threatening to undermine local producers. Bashir Ahmad Basheer, president of the Kashmir Valley Fruit Growers Cum Dealers Union (KVFGU) says the potential influx of cheaper Washington apples will devastate Indian markets and crush small growers who have no alternative income.
Basheer and other local growers fear that an influx of imported apples and walnuts will undercut the prices they can charge for their produce, pushing many family-run farms out of business.
Small-scale farmers, who make up the backbone of Kashmir’s agricultural economy, are particularly vulnerable to price fluctuations and market distortions. With no other reliable means of livelihood, many see the fruits of their labour not just as a source of income, but as an integral part of their cultural identity.
Last month, Basheer’s organization, which represents growers from 13 regions including major production centers like Srinagar, Sopore, and Baramulla, sent a passionate appeal to Prime Minister Narendra Modi. The letter emphasized the precarious position of Kashmir’s horticultural sector, which contributes 92 per cent of India’s walnut production and a substantial portion of its apples.
“We have faced natural disasters and political unrest with remarkable resilience,” Basheer wrote in the letter, “but this shift in trade policy could deal a fatal blow to an already struggling industry.”
The KVFGU’s demands are clear and urgent: India must resist American pressure to lower tariffs and, instead, increase them to 100 per cent on Washington apples in order to protect domestic growers. Without such measures, Basheer warns, “the backbone of Kashmir’s economy could snap irreparably.”
Kashmir’s apple orchards span thousands of acres and support tens of thousands of workers. The US decision to raise tariffs on Indian goods has already strained trade relations, and India has threatened to retaliate by increasing its tariffs on American products.
However, the possibility of reduced duties on US agricultural imports now casts a shadow over Kashmir’s horticulture sector, which is urgently calling for protection.
“Generations of Kashmiris have been into apple farming and walnut cultivation. It is not only about money but about our survival. If the government doesn’t act swiftly to protect us, we fear for our future,” said Wahid Ahmad, a farmer from southern Shopian district.