Kashmir Impulse Desk
Srinagar, Aug 6
A powerful windstorm accompanied by hail damaged apple orchards across south Kashmir’s Shopian district on Thursday, knocking fruit from trees and inflicting heavy losses on growers just weeks before the harvest, farmers and local horticulture representatives said.
The storm swept through nearly two dozen apple-growing villages, including Bemnipora, Check Nowgam, Kachdoora, Hanjipora and Pandoshan, at around 2 pm, with strong winds and hail lasting for close to an hour, residents said.
Growers said large quantities of fruit were blown off trees while hail damaged much of the remaining crop, reducing both its quality and market value.
“We spend the entire year tending our orchards, and within minutes much of the crop was destroyed,” said farmer Javed Ahmad.
Muhammad Ashraf Wani, President of the Shopian Fruit Mandi, said hailstones struck orchards for up to 15 minutes, with some areas suffering losses approaching total crop failure.
He urged the government to introduce a crop insurance scheme to protect apple growers from recurring weather-related disasters.
Shopian is one of Jammu and Kashmir’s largest apple-producing districts, with horticulture providing livelihoods for thousands of farming families.
