Bulbs of the saffron plants have been damaged due to excess rain and flooding in the region
SRINAGAR: The saffron crop in Kashmir valley has registered a substantial damage during the flash floods in Jammu and Kashmir. The bulbs of the saffron plants have been damaged due to excess rain and flooding in the region causing a loss to the farmers.
Whatever crop saved will come to market in coming weeks as flowering wold start in a few days. However whatever has been saved because they were on the hills will have better productivity.
Abdul Mujid Vani, President of saffron Growers Association at Pampore told Business Standard that in the low lying areas of Nahma, Katapur, Basru and Sambura the floods have completely destroyed the crop.
The major saffron growing pocket of Kashmir, Pampore in district Pulwama has lost 70% of the crop. Pampore is the major saffron belt of Kashmir growing almost 90% of the total crop.
The areas of Khrew, Shar, Ladoo, Latapura and Disu have retained some of the saffron plants and loss has been contained here.
Saffron is grown in close to 3,200 hectare of Kashmir scattered in the districts of Pulwama, Budgam and Kishtwar. Last year approximately 11 tonne of saffron was produced that fetched Rs 1.50 lakh to Rs 1.75 lakh per kg to the farmers.
The flowering would start in a few days from now and farmers are expecting a good quality of crop from the remaining plants.
The annual consumption of saffron in India is about 40 tonne and Iran is a major supplier of saffron for our country. Iranian saffron-kesar is quoted at Rs 1.25 mlakh per kg in Mumbai while Kashmir origin saffron is quoted at Rs.2 lakh per kg in Mumbai.
With Kashmir crop falling now Iranian saffron is mixed with Kashmir saffron to optimize revenues for Kashmiri farmers, a saffron trader from Mumbai said.
A saffron mission was rolled out in India in year 2010 to encourage more farmers to grow saffron as in the past few years farmers had reduced area under saffron.
Under the mission, a subsidy of Rs 2 lakh per acre is offered to the farmers for adopting high-tech seeds and sowing technology. Most of the farmers in Kashmir sought benefit under the scheme. Families of 126 villages earn their livelihood by saffron farming.
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