{"id":12431,"date":"2026-02-17T17:58:34","date_gmt":"2026-02-17T17:58:34","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/kashmirthunder.in\/?p=12431"},"modified":"2026-02-17T18:02:27","modified_gmt":"2026-02-17T18:02:27","slug":"legislators-seek-apple-industry-safeguards-amid-trade-talks","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/kashmirthunder.in\/index.php\/2026\/02\/17\/legislators-seek-apple-industry-safeguards-amid-trade-talks\/","title":{"rendered":"Legislators seek apple industry safeguards amid trade talks"},"content":{"rendered":"

Jammu, Feb 17:\u00a0<\/strong>Legislators cutting across party lines on Tuesday voiced concern in the Jammu and Kashmir Assembly over the potential impact of proposed free trade agreements on the region\u2019s apple industry, urging the government to intervene and safeguard the interests of growers.<\/p>\n

Raising concerns in House, Peoples Conference president and MLA Sajad Gani Lone said the government cannot distance itself by calling it outside its domain. \u201cThis is the internet era. The government can assess the landed cost of American apples in markets like Dubai and anticipate the impact. They should communicate with the Government of India now instead of waiting for the agreement to be signed,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

He urged the Chief Minister to personally take up the matter with New Delhi before any deal is finalised. \u201cIf there has to be an economic revival in J&K, it will come through horticulture,\u201d he added.<\/p>\n

MLA Sajad criticised the government\u2019s past response to crises faced by fruit growers, recalling losses during highway disruptions.<\/p>\n

He said the administration had downplayed the situation by claiming only a small percentage of fruit was ready for transport and that the National Highway was not under its control. \u201cThe growers suffered losses worth crores and no compensation was paid. Those losses can never be fully recovered,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

Similarly, Congress MLA Irfan Hafiz Lone said the horticulture sector has already suffered significant losses in recent years and any deal that puts farmers\u2019 future at risk would be unacceptable.<\/p>\n

\u201cOur apple industry has suffered a lot. If a deal with America puts our farmers at stake, nothing will be left for them. Such a deal will go against the interests of the people,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

PDP MLA Waheed Ur Rehman Para, said apple cultivation has sustained Kashmir through its most difficult phases and any adverse trade arrangement could deepen the ongoing crisis.<\/p>\n

\u201cApple has kept Kashmir alive in challenging circumstances. If the market is opened without safeguards, the crisis will intensify,\u201d he said. Para maintained that while the J&K government may have limited powers over international trade, it must proactively engage with the Government of India and flag the repercussions for local growers.<\/p>\n

He called for an all-party meeting to deliberate on the issue. \u201cThis concerns everyone, BJP, Congress and the government. A joint strategy must be evolved at the earliest,\u201d he said, adding that the region\u2019s economy cannot revive unless the apple industry is protected.<\/p>\n

MLA Irshad Rasool Kar said the sector is set to face stiff competition from multiple countries and the government must step in with concrete relief measures.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe are already competing with several nations. Subsidies on fertilisers and transportation support can help farmers remain competitive,\u201d he said, adding that he has repeatedly raised these demands.<\/p>\n

The lawmakers collectively stressed that timely intervention and a unified political approach are essential to shield the apple industry, which forms the backbone of Jammu and Kashmir\u2019s rural economy\u2014(KNO)<\/strong><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Jammu, Feb 17:\u00a0Legislators cutting across party lines on Tuesday voiced concern in the Jammu and Kashmir Assembly over the potential impact of proposed free trade agreements on the region\u2019s apple industry, urging the government to intervene and safeguard the interests of growers. Raising concerns in House, Peoples Conference president and MLA Sajad Gani Lone said […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":12438,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jnews-multi-image_gallery":[],"jnews_single_post":[],"jnews_primary_category":[],"jnews_social_meta":[],"jnews_override_counter":[],"footnotes":""},"categories":[27],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-12431","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-latest-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/kashmirthunder.in\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/12431","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/kashmirthunder.in\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/kashmirthunder.in\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kashmirthunder.in\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kashmirthunder.in\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=12431"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/kashmirthunder.in\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/12431\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":12433,"href":"https:\/\/kashmirthunder.in\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/12431\/revisions\/12433"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kashmirthunder.in\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/12438"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/kashmirthunder.in\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=12431"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kashmirthunder.in\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=12431"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kashmirthunder.in\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=12431"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}