Kargil: After 40 years of export ban, a consignment of fresh Ladakhi Apricot was exported to Dubai from Kargil district of Union Territory of Ladakh.
A consignment of 150 kg Raktsey Karpo, the sweetest apricot, was sent to an international market in Dubai from Kargil. Krishak Agritech, a farmer centric organization that is working with farmers across the Himalayan states undertook a task to find a way to export fresh Ladakhi apricots to foreign destinations.
Apricot fruit is known for its high content of vitamin A and C, calcium, iron, carbohydrates, amino acids, sugar, and potassium. For decades the people of Ladakh have consumed the apricot, locally known as Chuli.
An integral part of the local culture, dry and fresh apricots are served as desserts, particularly during traditional festivals in UT of Ladakh.
Chairman and Chief Executive Councilor, LAHDC, Kargil, Feroz Ahmad Khan along with the Deputy Commissioner and CEO, LAHDC, Kargil Santosh Sukhadeve flagged off the first ever international export of Ladakhi apricot to Dubai.
CEC Feroz Ahmad Khan expressed happiness on the export of fresh local apricot outside Ladakh which has been banned for over 40 years . He further stated that this event marks an important milestone for Kargil, as now Krishak Agritech has taken the fruit not only to the Indian market but also to the international market, with their first order of 150 kg from Dubai.
CEC further said that apart from paving way for local entrepreneurs to participate in the value chain of apricot, this initiative would also ensure that the farmers of Kargil benefit from reduced wastage and receive the real value of their crop, adding he also said that apricot has recently been identified as the primary crop for Kargil under one district one crop programme of the Government of India.
CEC Kargil also thanked Krishak Agritech for this endeavour and assured all support to take this journey further and make this initiative a success.
DC Kargil Santosh Sukhadeve hailed efforts undertaken by Krishak Agritech through their innovative, sustainable and scalable intervention.
Founder Krishak Agritech Naveen Gahlawat informed that so far the organisation has exported 20 MT of fresh apricot worth Rs 30 lakhs procured from more than 200 farmers of UT Ladakh, in addition to generating over 600 mandays of direct employment.
He further informed that the fruit has reached Mumbai, Hyderabad, Ahmedabad and Delhi/ NCR markets, adding that while they continue to explore the domestic markets, the support from all the stakeholders involved has been their pillar of motivation.
Naveen Gahlavat also introduced the entrepreneurs from Kargil and local partners of Krishak Agritech Ghulam Mustafa, Kacho Mehboob Ali Khan and Muhammad Javed who helped the organization to successfully complete the novel task for this season.