Landslides, cloudbursts give harrowing time to HP apple growers

SHIMLA: The recent heavy rainfall, triggering flood, landslides and cloudbursts in Himachal Pradesh, has come as a setback for the apple growers particularly in Kinnaur and Upper Shimla who are unable to transport their produce to the market.

Due to damage in road links like Sangla-Chittkul, Tangling-Purnavi near Recong Peo in Kinnaur and Ghanvi-Ladana-Sudana and Ghanvi-Pancha in Rampur sub-division of Shimla district, thousands of apple boxes were lying stranded.

Their woes have been multiplied as truckers were asking for exorbitant fare to transport the apples to Azadpur market in Delhi.

Satyajit Negi, an orchardist from Purvani village of Kinnaur told PTI that due to flood in Tangling, apple growers were facing problem to transport to the market over 70,000 boxes of apple in Powari and Purvani.

About 20,000-25,000 apple boxes were lying stranded in Ghanvi village of Shimla which witnessed devastating cloudburst triggering flash flood on August 14 that washed away several roads.

Horticulture Minister Singhi Ram told PTI today that the government was aware of the woes of the apple growers due to natural calamity.

Repair and restoration of roads were on at a war-footing to open link roads for movement of apples to the markets.

Besides, government has opened 263 apple collection centres across the state under the market intervention scheme in which culled apple is being purchased at a rate of Rs 4.25 per kg, he added.

Narrating his sorrow, an apple grower from Gahan village of Kinnaur, Sahib Singh Mehta, said after much difficulty and a high rate, he had sent his apples to Delhi which reached at Azadpur Mandi yesterday but the labourers were not unloading his fruits.

"I got the report that apples would be unloaded only on Monday," he said adding because of delay many apples might get rotten.

Rajendra Suneil of Kadri village near Ghanvi said his thousands of apple boxes were lying stranded in the absence of trucks to transport them to Delhi.

Development officer of horticulture department M M Chauhan said survey revealed that apples worth about Rs seven lakh was lying stranded in Ghanvi.

The apple growers of Ghanvi and neighbouring Dharla village narrated their woes to Chief Minister Virbhadra Singh when he paid a visit to Ghanvi on Saturday. He assured them that a span would be laid from Dharla to Ghanvi for transportation of their crop to the main road for onward journey.

He ordered Deputy Commissioner of the district for lying span at the earliest.