An intense hailstorm that happened this Sunday, struck several villages of south Kashmir’s Shopian and Kulgam districts, causing significant damage to the apples that are still on the trees. The hailstorm hit Kanjiullar, Kapran, Feripora, Pratappora, and Vehil villages of Shopian district. Similar reports suggesting extensive damage to apple crops have been received from Behibagh, Kader Dadrkoot, and Shiganpora villages.
One growers claimed that around 60 percent of the crop in the Kanjiullar area was yet to be harvested. "The harvesting season in this area begins a bit late. The farmer had started apple picking last week,” he said.
The apple farmers have already experienced huge losses over the last few years due to the perennial closure of the Srinagar-Jammu National Highway, market gluts and unseasonal snowfall.
Source: greaterkashmir.com