Shimla (Himachal Pradesh) [India], January 15 (ANI): Himachal Pradesh Chief Minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu on Thursday met with Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman in New Delhi, urging the Union Government to intervene urgently on behalf of the state's apple growers against the crippling influx of foreign apples.

Advocating strongly for the interests of over 2.5 lakh apple growers, the Chief Minister urged for including apples in the 'special category' to shield domestic growers from unfair International competition.

The Chief Minister urged an immediate ban on all apple imports during the peak Himachal production window, i.e. July to November and a hike in import duty of apples to 100 per cent during off-season months to discourage foreign dumping. He requested for quantitative restriction be imposed on apple imports.

The Chief Minister briefed the Union Minister that a delegation of progressive orchardists of the State also met him on Tuesday, and they raised their concern over the reduction of import duty on apples being imported from New Zealand, which has adversely affected the interests of local orchardists.

Chief Minister highlighted that Himachal Pradesh, known as the 'Apple State of India,' generates an annual income of approximately Rs. 4,500 crore from apple production, contributing nearly 80 per cent of the state's total fruit production.

''This is not just about fruit, it is about the livelihood and sustenance of 2.5 lakh families and the generation of 10 lakh man-days of employment,' the CM stated.

'Our small and marginal farmers are being pushed to the brink by trade policies that favour foreign corporations over Indian soil,' he remarked.

The Chief Minister expressed grave concern over the Free Trade Agreement (FTA) with New Zealand, noting that imports have surged 2.5 times over the past ten years. He said that the 25 per cent duty exemption for New Zealand apples during the April August window was crashing prices for local apples stored in CA/cold storage facilities, effectively destroying the off-season trade for Himachal's growers.

He said that effective steps were to be taken to protect the livelihood of small and marginal farmers. (ANI)