Garhwal Post Bureau
Dehradun, 21 Sep: On Saturday, Agriculture Minister Ganesh Joshi, while addressing a press conference at his camp office, declared that the state government has taken a major decision in the interest of apple growers of district Uttarkashi in view of the recent disaster situation. Responding to farmers’ demands, the government has fixed the Minimum Support Price (MSP) for apples at Rs 51 per kilogram for Royal Delicious and Rs 45 per kilogram for Red Delicious.
Expressing gratitude to Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami for this decision, the Agriculture Minister said that the Chief Minister has been consistently taking farmer-friendly initiatives. He added that apples from the Harshil Valley are renowned worldwide for their quality, but the recent disaster in the Dharali region has caused heavy losses to local farmers. To provide relief to affected farmers, the state government has taken this significant step. He further stated that farmers had been consistently demanding procurement of apples, and as per his earlier directions to departmental officers, the MSP has now been finalised to give farmers the much-needed relief.
The Minister highlighted that recent heavy rains, hailstorms, and natural calamities have caused extensive damage to horticultural and agricultural crops. The total affected horticultural area has been recorded at 12,549.52 hectares. Out of this, crop loss exceeding 33% has been reported on 5,054.65 hectares (including 1,454.99 hectares irrigated and 3,600.66 hectares unirrigated). Similarly, in the agriculture sector, the area with crop loss above 33% has been recorded at 136.50 hectares.
He revealed that 6,873 farmers have been affected by the natural disaster. He assured that compensation will soon be provided to them as per norms. He reiterated that the state government firmly stands with farmers in this hour of crisis.
