Shopian: The first two-day national conference of apple farmers organised by the Apple Farmers’ Federation of India (AFFI) began in south Kashmir’s Shopian district on Saturday.
Around 200 delegates from apple-rich areas participated in the conference.
Addressing a news conference, senior CPI (M) leader Muhammad Yousuf Tarigami said that last year an apple workshop was organised by All India Kisan Sabha (AIKS) in collaboration with the Jammu and Kashmir Kissan Tehreek to deliberate upon the issues confronting the apple farmers across the apple producing states of the country.
“The workshop was attended by the experts from the top-tier universities and research institutes,” he said.
Tarigami said that it was decided during that workshop to launch an organised movement to save the apple farmers.
“Unless the apple farmers converge under one banner and raise a united voice, their just demands will not be fulfilled,” Tarigami said.
Referring to the recent farmers’ movement against the three contentious farm laws, Tarigami said that whenever the farms launched a united movement the ruling dispensations had to concede to their demands.
“In the recent farmers’ protests, many said that the present dispensation would not listen to their demands, but we see finally the government had to give in to their demands,” he said.
Tarigami said that the apple farmers had to put up a united show to save the apple industry.
He said that the AFFI was formed with the absolute support of AIKS to provide farmers a platform to fight for the genuine demands.
Castigating the government for doing away with the extra import duty on Washington apples, Tarigami said that the decision would impact the domestic growers.
Stressing on the need for unity among the farmers, Tarigami said that we should rise above our political and regional interests to fight for the farmers.
Earlier, addressing the conference, president AIKS, Ashok Dhawale said that the major challenge before the farmers was the jacked -up input costs.
“The farmers are not able to sell their produce at a good price or even recoup the input costs,” he said.
Dhawale said that the problems of Kashmiri apple growers were more serious than the farmers faced in the rest of the country.
“Last year, the government halted the apple laden trucks along the National Highway and all the fruit went bad,” he said.
Dhawale said that it was a recurring problem in Kashmir.
He said that the present dispensation wanted to crush the economy of apple farmers by causing disruptions in the National Highway.
He said that over the last nine years more than one lakh farmers across the country committed suicide.
“They were groaning under the burden of crushing debts,” Dhawale said, adding that the farmers of Kashmir were also debt-ridden.
He also emphasised the unity among the farmers.
During the conference, Zahoor Ahmad, senior Kissan leader presented a detailed conference report.
The report comprised many parts including a part on charter of demands.