Centre’s Decision on Apple Import Duty Direct Betrayal of Himachal’s Orchardists : Rohit Thakur

· A Direct Blow to Himachal’s Rs. 5,000-Crore Apple Economy

Shimla Dec 25:
Education Minister Rohit Thakur has strongly condemned the Union Government’s apple import policies, stating that successive decisions taken by the Centre reflect a clear anti-farmer and anti-horticulture mindset, pushing Himachal Pradesh’s apple growers towards serious economic uncertainty.

Reacting to the reduction of import duty on apples imported from New Zealand from 50 percent to 25 percent under the Free Trade Agreement (FTA), Rohit Thakur said the decision amounts to a direct betrayal of all apple orchardists including Himachal. He said apple cultivation is the backbone of Himachal Pradesh’s hill economy and any policy that weakens domestic growers is a direct attack on the livelihood of lakhs of families dependent on horticulture.

He said the Centre had repeatedly assured apple growers of protection, but those assurances remained unfulfilled.

Rohit Thakur further pointed out that the Market Intervention Scheme share (MIS) for cull apples and other agriculture and horticulture produce, which was introduced by the then Congress government as a centrally sponsored scheme, was effectively discontinued by the Modi government 2023 onwards by withdrawing the Centre’s financial share. He said the Centre drastically reduced its budget provision for MIS from about Rs. 4000 crore in 2022–23 to a token Rs. one lakh in the 2023–24 Union Budget, making meaningful implementation of the scheme impossible.
He said that this decision deprived growers of a vital safety net, particularly for cull fruit, and clearly reflects the Centre’s anti-horticulture policy, he remarked.