Shopian: Export of apple has resumed after it was suspended due to Covid-19 lockdown with owners allowed to send fruit to the different parts of India. A store owner from Shopian told Kashmir Reader that from Friday they are going to start the export of apple with limited quantity to other parts of India. “The rates will be decided once the trucks reach their respective stations,” he said. Another trader dealing with fruit said that a limited number of trucks have been allowed to move following advisories and guidelines.

According to a document accessed by Kashmir Reader, directorate of Horticulture has also written to the law enforcing agencies about the hassle-free movement of vehicles and employees carrying high-density apple plantation so that the plants would not sprout and result in losses.

According to official figures, around two lakh apple trees are being imported from different countries to Kashmir while around three lakh are being transplanted to district-based nurseries since they have been imported last year and put for quarantine. The data also reveal that 150 hectares of Horticulture land are being brought under high density this year. “I think the plantation drive may get affected this year as it isn’t possible to distribute them in districts and conduct the drive-in time of Covid-19 crisis,” a top official from the directorate told Kashmir Reader.

Raashid Hassan