The region of North India, particularly in Himachal Pradesh as well as Jammu and Kashmir, the agriculture sector faces problems due to climate changes. The apple industry, which is vital to local economics, is experiencing unpredictable conditions of weather, such as heavy rainfall, less snowfall, and rapid temperatures rising. This is a problem for apple production, which is thriving when temperatures are cooler. This region has experienced declines in production due to these drastic changes in the climate and the appearance of a variety of maladies in orchards.

Jammu and Kashmir’s horticulture sector that contributes about 8 percent of the GDP, has been severely affected and apple production is the main concern. Farmers are seeing a year-on-year decrease in their production. Aamir Manzoor is an apple farmer from Shopian noted the lack of flowers in orchards as well as decreased production of fruit despite efforts to counter these effects. Lack of sufficient snowfall as well as untimely rains are among the causes that affect yields of the crop. Moving from traditional apple orchards and high-density apple orchards is raising the issue of environmental issues among farmers, which raises questions about the sustainability and ecological consequences of the techniques.

The current heatwave that has hit the Kashmir Valley, expected to last for a while, has already affected the early season crops such as cherries and strawberries. There are the possibility of apples being affected too. Mukhtar Ahmad, director of MeT Mukhtar Ahmad, a MeT Director, explains that the heatwave is a factor in forcing maturation of crops because of the clear skies and heating of soil. Temperatures rising also raise the chance of developing infections in orchards, making fruit production more vulnerable.

Source: wionews.com