Sopore: Fruit mandis across Kashmir shut down on Monday to protest the government’s failure to ensure smooth passage of fruit-laden trucks on the Srinagar–Jammu highway.
Growers warned of valley-wide protests if the highway is not restored within two days.At Sopore’s Fruit Mandi—the second largest in Asia—orchardists broke down, saying their produce was rotting in stranded trucks while the government “watched silently.
”Fruit Growers’ Association president Fayaz Ahmed Malik accused Chief Minister Omar Abdullah of neglecting the crisis. “If the CM can’t ensure movement of fruit trucks, he has no right to remain in office,” he said, adding that no MLA had spoken for the growers.
Farmers alleged that trucks carrying other goods were being allowed while fruit consignments were deliberately blocked. Malik warned that a valley-wide strike could paralyse economic activity if the issue is not resolved within 48 hours.
Mandis in Sopore, Handwara, Shopian, Kulgam, Anantnag and others also observed the two-day shutdown on September 14–15. Hundreds of fruit-laden trucks remain stranded, causing heavy losses to growers.
