Heavy snowfall buries hopes of saffron growers in Kashmir
PAMPORE: A fortnight ago, dozens of young men and women used to leave their homes early in the morning and head for the fields spread on both sides of the National Highway in south Kashmir to collect the fragrant reddish orange threads from saffron bulbs.
They were hoping for a bumper crop after months of unrest, after the August 5 move by the Centre to nullify Article 370 , which stripped Jammu and Kashmir of its special status, and curbs clamped on public movement and communications that hurt every business in the Valley. Many saffron growers believed production will triple.
Heavy snowfall in the first week of November put paid to those hopes.the precipitation from November 6 to 8 in the hills and plains of Kashmir has left more than 40% of the saffron crop buried under snow in Pampore, where most of the saffron grows. With the saffron bulbs completely damaged, no one is venturing out to pluck fresh flowers.
“There won’t be any flower pickings now. We were hopeful that the yield would increase and double or triple from the previous year’s production. Unfortunately the heavy snowfall damaged the crop,” says Mohammad Ashraf, who lives in Dassu village, where the Jammu & Kashmir government has set up a spice park with the Centre’s help.
Saffron is used mainly as a seasoning and colouring agent in food and is believed to be the most expensive spice in the world by weight, fetching between ₹1.5 lakh and ₹2.5 lakh a kilogram.
The climatic conditions in Kashmir are thought to be ideal to grow the flower of Crocus sativus, from which saffron is derived.
There won’t be any flower pickings now. We were hopeful the yield would increase more than previous year’s. Unfortunately, the heavy snowfall damaged crop
MUHAMMAD ASHRAF, farmer
SEASON BEGAN LATE
This year, the flower collection in Kashmir started late October because of unrest and growers had been preparing for a longer flower-plucking season that would last all November.
“This snowfall happened at the peak of the saffron harvest. For me and my family the good harvest was the only hope, especially when every business has been closed for more than 100 days now,’’ said Ashraf.
Ghulam Ahmad Magray, a businessman-farmer owing an acre of saffron land int Lethpora, is rueful.
“Saffron always used to supplement my business income every year. From August 5, when special status was removed, the shops were shut and I have done no business at all. I had hopes that saffron will fetch me good money but that was not to be,’’ said Magray, who owns a chain of shops.
Like the saffron, its collection is also colourful. The fragrant reddish orange stamens are painstakingly separated from the purple flowers as women sing folksongs in a chorus. After the snowfall this year, large swathes of saffron fields are white and silent.
Close to Magray’s house, Mohammad Iqbal has setup a showroom where he used to sell saffron and dry fruits to the tourists travelling on the national highway. “there are no tourists and due to continuous shutdown I have not opened my shop from last three months. Even if I open my shop there won’t be any customers,’’ iqbal said.
He used to sell dry fruits and other merchandise, such as handicrafts, and earn around ₹30,000 to ₹40,000 everyday. “Since our shop is close to saffron fields, the demand for original saffron was always there and a major chunk of money used to come from saffron sale. Now, I don’t have enough money to pay to my three salesmen.’’
Ghulam Mohammad Pampori, president of the Saffron Growers and Dealers’ Association, said saffron flowers are cultivated in 226 villagers spread over five districts of J&K. “Now, the area has shrunk and production has also come down. After many years we were eyeing a good harvest, but the Almighty had something else in store for us,’’ Pampori said.
He said the growers couldn’t complete the flower plucking. “The central government had started a saffron mission project to increase the production but the project has not gone the way it should have.”
Pampori, who himself owns a hectare of saffron land, said that he had plucked 10 kilograms of flowers. “After sorting, I will be able to get three to four kilograms of pure saffron.’’
Growers claim saffron was earlier grown on more than 5,500 hectares and its cultivation has come down to 4,000 hectares with many converting saffron fields into apple orchards. Some started using saffron fields for commercial purposes due to their prime locations on the National Highway.
The government has bought 3,500 hectares of land under the saffron mission with 3,200 hectares in Pulwama district and rest 3,00 hectares in Srinagar and Budgam.
“The production has witnessed a downturn for the past two decades. Even for the last three-four years, despite the launch of saffron mission, the dry spell affected the yield,’’ says Pampori.
The chief agriculture officer of Pulwama, Mohammad Qasim Ghani, said the growers had suffered a loss of more than 40% in saffron yield this year. “This year, after many years, the growers had a bumper crop and they had made two to three pickings when the snowfall damaged the crop,’’ he said.
“For the first time growers could have harvested near five kilograms of saffron per hectare due to favourable climatic conditions.’’ He sounded optimistic about next year’s outlook. “The snow will be good for the next year’s crop as it will have timely chilling effect on the saffron fields,” he said.