Fruit on the Brink: Govt deploys RTC fleet to rescue Apple transport
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By Younus Rashid
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23 Sep 2025
Move aims to prevent losses, end exploitation
SRINAGAR, Sept 23: In response to an acute shortage of transport and mounting complaints of overcharging, the government has deployed the
entire fleet of 200 Road Transport Corporation (RTC) trucks across Kashmir to assist fruit growers in ferrying apples to major markets across India.
Speaking to
Rising Kashmir,
Bashir Ahmad Sofi, General Manager (Load), RTC Kashmir, said the full fleet, comprising
34 multi-axle 18-ton trucks and
166 10-ton trucks, has been pressed into service.
“All 200 vehicles available in Kashmir have been deputed to fruit mandis. Growers are using these trucks to send apples to Delhi, Punjab, Haryana, Jalandhar, and Jammu,” he said.
He said the department has already issued fixed freight rates to ensure affordability and prevent exploitation. According to him, the cost per box has been set at ₹130 for Delhi, ₹120 for Haryana, ₹90 for Jalandhar, and ₹70 for Jammu.
Within Kashmir, RTC trucks have been stationed at major fruit mandis including
Sopore, Bijbehara, Shopian, Kulgam, and Ganderbal, facilitating swift movement of produce from orchards to interstate markets.
Sofi emphasised that the primary goal is to ease the burden on growers and restore order to a sector that has been facing logistical chaos. “We have utilized all trucks for the service of fruit growers to overcome the transport crisis. All vehicles available in Kashmir have been deputed to mandis,” he said.
Recently, Transport Minister Satish Sharma flagged off a fleet of RTC trucks loaded with fruit from Srinagar, acknowledging the distress faced by growers.
“The fruit crisis is no secret. From weather disruptions to highway closures, growers have suffered enormous losses. On the Chief Minister’s instructions, we implemented Plan B without delay,” Sharma said. He noted that trucks originally allocated for ration transport were diverted to support fruit movement.
“Ration can wait for 2–3 days, but apples worth crores were on the verge of rotting. Our immediate response was necessary,” he explained.
The minister also addressed grower complaints of overcharging, harassment, and monopoly by private transporters.
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