Notwithstanding, the bumper paddy crop this year, the farmers who grow the famous Kashmiri rice see no future among the locals.
Ironically, region’s iconic paddy fields have diminished by a staggering twenty-eight percent over the past seven years. South Kashmir, historically the largest rice cultivation area, has witnessed a drastic transformation as farmers find rice cultivation increasingly unprofitable. Almost seventy percent of the paddy fields in this region have now been converted into apple orchards.
This shift, while welcomed by some farmers, highlights the alarming trend of shrinking agricultural land in Kashmir, leaving the future of the famed Kashmiri rice hanging in the balance.
The conversion from agriculture to horticulture has one simple reason, which is purely commercial. Apple brings more money to farmers than rice.
Shabir Ahmad, a farmer from Delina, Baramulla who owns ten kanals of paddy land said that growing Paddy is more labour intensive while growing fruit brings more money. “Buying rice from the market to feed families was unheard of a few years ago. But now with apple cultivation, everyone purchases rice from the market, which costs us Rs 3000 a quintal. And in a year, we need four to five quintals of rice for our personal consumption,” said Shabir, adding that those who still grow paddy nowadays are dependent on the income from the apples.
“Look, growing padding is day by day getting costlier. From facing water crises to pesticides, rice cultivation is turning unprofitable. Even it is scorching hot one day. Next day, there’s a hailstorm. It is followed by strong winds, then sunny weather and then, biting cold. What can a farmer do in such conditions? They were at a loss and decided to switch to horticulture and grow apples,” said Shabir.
“Before shifting to horticulture, my land was used for paddy which didn’t benefit us at all. For the last two to three years, with the help of the horticulture department, we shifted to horticulture. We never thought the results would be so amazing,” said Amir Ahmad, another farmer.
Ali Mohammad, a 50-year-old farmer from Kreeri village in Baramulla district, used to earn around Rs 15,000 from the paddy he grew on his 12-kanal of land. “But now, we grow apples on the same land which fetches us a profit of three lakh rupees annually. We have a family of 10 people and all are dependent on the apple orchard,” he said.
According to the official report of the J&K government, the area under fruits crops has increased by 6978 hectares that is from 334719 hectares in the year 2020-21 to 341697 hectares, recording a growth of 2.08 percent. “The overall fruit production has increased by 3.95 lakh metric tonnes during 2021-22 that is from 20.36 lakh metric tonnes in the year 2020-21 to 24.31 lakh metric tonnes, recording a growth of 19.39 percent,” reads the report.
Agriculture experts believe that the agricultural land is shrinking at an alarming rate in Kashmir and at places the land has been converted into commercial purposes.
“Rice is the main food in Kashmir and there are no other crops which are used as daily food. However, the conversion of agricultural lands is occurring throughout Kashmir, which is a source of concern not just for the government but also for communities,” said one of the expert.
In fact, the tale of transformation mirrors countless such stories of marginal and small holding farmers across the Kashmir valley switching to horticulture, with many preferring plantation of high-yielding apples which serve as “cash crops”.
Lush green paddy fields, which were visually appealing and provided food for the people, are rapidly disappearing and being replaced by concrete constructions. With housing colonies and commercial complexes sprouting on agricultural land, experts fear that there would be little land left for agriculture in Kashmir shortly.
A senior agriculture department official said, “The Revenue Department can provide an exact figure for the conversion of agricultural land to nonfarm activity.”
“I will admit that conversion of farmlands is happening across Kashmir which is a cause of concern not only for the government but for locals as well,” Chowdhary Mohammad Iqbal, Director Agriculture said.
Discussion about this post