Shimla, Jan. 15 -- 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 ...