HPMC’s New MIS Payment Guidelines Anti-Orchardist, BJP Warns of Statewide Protest
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Shimla, December 24, 2025:
BJP leader Chetan Baragta strongly criticized the Congress government over the new guidelines issued by HPMC for payment of apples procured under the Market Intervention Scheme (MIS). Calling the guidelines anti-orchardist and impractical, he alleged that additional documentation requirements such as horticulture cards, Aadhaar and land records were deliberately imposed to delay payments to apple growers.
Baragta said that orchardists are already struggling due to natural calamities and market uncertainties, and the new norms amount to harassment at the time of payment. He questioned why such verifications were not demanded at the time of procurement and warned that linking payments strictly with revenue records would exclude genuine growers, especially in hill areas with joint or leased landholdings.
He cautioned that if the guidelines are not withdrawn immediately and payments are not made in a simple and transparent manner, the BJP would launch a statewide agitation alongside apple growers, holding the state government fully responsible.
