CITU’s Tarigami and Farmer Leaders Demand Compensation, Royalty Hikes, and Remedies for Apple Farmers’ Distress
CITU President Tarigami Urges Central Government Action: Kashmir's Power Crisis, Disadvantages of Indus Water Treaty, and the Plight of Apple Farmers in Focus
26-11-2023 : In defiance of restrictions and braving severe cold conditions, a multitude of activists from the Centre of Indian Trade Unions (CITU) and the Jammu Kashmir Apple Farmers Federation gathered at Press Enclave today to stage protest demonstrations against what they perceive as the government’s anti-people, anti-worker, and anti-farmer policies.
Addressing the impassioned gathering, CITU president Mohammad Yousuf Tarigami voiced grave concerns regarding the challenges faced by the common populace. Highlighting the dire power crisis currently afflicting Kashmir, Tarigami emphasized the region’s struggle with acute power shortages, subjecting its residents to prolonged and unscheduled power cuts, especially at a time when temperatures in the Valley have plummeted to sub-zero levels.
Attributing Jammu and Kashmir’s predicament to the Indus Water Treaty (IWT), Tarigami argued that the Union Territory finds itself at a disadvantage, grappling with substantial annual losses and a restricted power generation potential of 15,000 MW. He urged the Central Government to acknowledge and compensate for these losses. Additionally, he advocated for the elevation of royalty from the existing 12% to 40% in all Centre Sector Hydroelectric Projects (HEPs) in the region, deeming it a legitimate demand essential for ameliorating the precarious power situation in J&K. Tarigami further stressed the imperative need for the implementation of recommendations by the Rangarajan Committee, specifically the transfer of two J&K-based hydro-electric power projects to the Union Territory.
In tandem with the CITU president’s sentiments, Ghulam Nabi Malik, a prominent farmer leader, articulated the distress experienced by apple farmers in the region. Despite apples being the livelihood for numerous households in Kashmir, farmers face the critical issue of being denied remunerative prices for their produce. Malik lamented the supply of spurious pesticides, fungicides, and fertilizers, which not only harm the crops but also jeopardize the orchards instead of addressing various diseases.
Echoing these sentiments, farmer leader Mohammad Afzal Parry raised demands for a 100% import duty on foreign apples, the provision of fertilizers and pesticides at subsidized rates for apple farmers, and the establishment of cold storage facilities in apple-producing districts. Parry also emphasized the necessity of implementing a crop insurance scheme at the grassroots level under government supervision to ensure the protection of farmers’ interests. The collective call from the activists and leaders underscored the urgency for policy reforms and concrete actions to alleviate the plight of the common people, workers, and farmers in the region.
