SRINAGAR, Aug 30: With the Srinagar-Jammu National Highway closed for several days, fruit growers and traders from Kashmir today demanded its immediate restoration.
Warning of heavy losses as hundreds of fruit-laden trucks remain stranded, stakeholders said early fruit varieties, which have a shorter shelf life, should have ideally reached mandis within a few days.
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President of Fruit Mandi Sopore, Fayaz Ahmad, said the ongoing period is the peak season for transporting produce to markets across the country.
"The National Highway has been shut for days, and it has severely hit the horticulture sector in Kashmir. We urge the Government to restore the road on priority so that we get some relief," he said.
Stressing that those associated with the sector are staring at heavy losses, Ahmad suggested that the authorities should engage the Army for immediate restoration of the highway on a war-footing basis.
"We saw how the Army constructed a bridge in Jammu within hours. Similar efforts must be made here. This is the peak season when produce goes out, and early varieties, being perishable, must reach mandis within a few days," he said.
He added that nearly 400 trucks have been loaded from Sopore mandi alone and, by that calculation, as per him, around 800 fruit-laden trucks must be stranded along the highway.
Traders from Shopian voiced similar concerns and also demanded the immediate start of work on the proposed Mughal Road tunnel to facilitate heavy-vehicle movement to prevent such a situation in future.
"Mughal Road has been opened, but the highway is closed. These early varieties are perishable and cannot be stored, not even in cold storage as we do not have such a technology here," said Mohammad Ashraf, President of Fruit and Vegetable Mandi, Shopian.
He added that only 6-tyre trucks are allowed on Mughal Road, but there is a shortage of such vehicles, and those available are already stuck on the highway.
"We urge the CM and LG administration to at least allow fruit-laden trucks to move on a priority basis. Some trucks carrying vegetables from Udhampur have been allowed yesterday, but ours are still stuck," he said.
Losses are already mounting, but priority movement will at least minimize them, he noted.
Stakeholders said the delay in transportation is causing huge financial losses, especially as early apple varieties are highly perishable.
With the highway being the only major route connecting the Valley to outside markets, any disruption directly impacts fruit exports, they said.
"This is peak harvest season, and the closure has choked the supply chain. If this continues, the losses will be irreparable," said a fruit grower from Sopore in north Kashmir's Baramulla district.
They urged authorities to expedite restoration work and provide alternative arrangements for smooth transportation of apples.
Truckers who had come to Kashmir to load fruit and return to their respective states are also stuck, as the loading process has halted.
Shankar Lal, a truck driver from Rajasthan, currently stuck in Sopore, said: "I came here for loading and have been stuck for several days. We should get the load early so that we leave on time. We are also facing losses."
Bashir Ahmad Bashir, Chairman of the Kashmir Valley Fruit Growers cum Dealers Union, told 'Excelsior' that fruit mandis across Kashmir are packed with consignments of fresh fruit meant for transportation outside J&K, rapidly losing shelf life.