Shimla, Sept. 25 — Himachal Pradesh has seen a significant increase in apple arrivals this season, thanks to the state government’s focus on restoring road connectivity following heavy monsoon damage, Revenue, Horticulture and Tribal Development Minister Jagat Singh Negi said.
Negi shared that more than 1.90 crore apple boxes have reached markets this year, up from 1.23 crore boxes last year. “Prioritising connectivity restoration and meticulous planning helped achieve this, coupled with an increased yield,” he said.
To ensure smooth transport, the government deployed smaller vehicles where larger trucks could not reach and restored or temporarily reconnected damaged roads in record time. “Even during peak damage, government machinery worked round the clock to facilitate apple growers,” Negi noted. He also credited growers’ patience in delaying the harvest, which prevented the hard work from going to waste.
Under the Market Intervention Scheme (MIS), the state procured around 60,000 metric tonnes of culled apples, sending 35,000 metric tonnes to processing centres while 32,000 metric tonnes remain in transit. “This prevents low-quality apples from flooding the market and helps maintain stable prices for good-quality fruit,” Negi explained.
The minister acknowledged transport bottlenecks had caused a pile-up of culled stock but said the measure still protected farmers from losses. “If poor-quality apples had entered the open market, it would have affected demand and rates for quality fruit,” he said.
Negi highlighted the broader impact of this year’s rains, estimating over ₹5,000 crore in losses across Himachal, including damage to roads, orchards, power lines, irrigation projects, and drinking water schemes. “Even today, 320 roads remain blocked, including two national highways, 46 power lines are affected, and 69 drinking water schemes are disrupted,” he said.
Former Chief Minister and Opposition leader Jai Ram Thakur, during a visit to disaster-hit Lahaul-Spiti, criticised the government for delays in restoring road access, saying, “A bumper crop of cabbage and peas could not reach markets and are now rotting. The disaster and road closures are causing double damage.”
Responding, Negi said, “The roads he is talking about are BRO and NHAI projects, like the Chandigarh-Manali-Leh highway. Why does he not ask the central government why these highways are not being restored at war footing?”
