Srinagar, June 14 -- The weather may have kept the Valley's cherry growers at an edge this season, but the returns have given them a reason to smile. The Valley's first cash crop, cherry, is witnessing a good season despite weather vagaries, especially wind and hailstorms, which have become a regular feature this year. So far, thousands of boxes of cherries of different varieties have been exported across the country, and growers are fetching good prices, especially for newly introduced varieties like Washington, Makhmali, and Italy. Cherries are a highly perishable fruit, and the introduction of railway cargo has not only helped save time and freight costs but also ensured timely arrivals in mandis thereby fetching good rates. President of Srinagar fruit mandi and the Kashmir valley fruit growers and dealers association, Haji Bashir Ahmad Bashir, said this season the cherry harvest was around 50% less. "The vagaries of weather played their role, and the cherry harvest was around 50% of what it used to be, but the rates across India were good, and all the losses due to weather and other issues got compensated." He said air and railway cargo were the preferred modes of transportation used by growers. "The introduction of railway coaches for cherry was a great help, as it ensured timely arrivals of cherries in the Mumbai mandi, besides bringing down freight charges." He said northern Railway introduced a direct train for cherries and other stone fruits from Katra to Mumbai. Every day, almost 20 to 25 metric tonnes of cherries are dispatched from Katra. Cherries started arriving in Kashmir markets in late April, and the harvest will last till the first week of July. "The weather wasn't favourable this year. Kashmir is also feeling the impact of global warming. The hailstorm and wind in the cherry belts of Baramulla, Ganderbal, and south Kashmir caused a lot of damage, but the orchards that got saved had a bumper crop," said a senior horticulture officer. "The introduction of new hybrid varieties has also shown good results and fetched good prices in mandis." Grower Mohammad Shaban, who has Washington varieties of cherry in his orchard, said he managed to sell his cherries for Rs.200 to Rs.300 per kilogram. "At times, a good two-kilogram box fetched around Rs.700," he said. Though the highly perishable crop has a good customer base in Kashmir, most of the produce is exported to metropolitan cities such as Mumbai andDelhi. According to estimates by horticulture department, cherry is being cultivated on around 2,800 hectares. Considered season's first cash crop, it yields an annual turnover of Rs.130 crore to Rs.150 crore. Of late, new varieties like Italy, Washington, Hybrid Mishri, and Double have been attracting good prices in markets. As of now, fruit mandis at Sopore and Srinagar are leading in arrivals, and boxes are being dispatched to various parts of the country, especially to Katra, from where the railway runs a direct train to Mumbai. Though cherries are grown ubiquitously across the Valley, the major produce comes from central and north Kashmir. The Union Territory's annual production is around 12,000 to 14,000 metric tonnes, depending on weather conditions in winter and spring. Horticulture department officials said production was 11,289 MT in 2017 and 11,789 MT in 2018. In each of 2019, 2020, and 2023, the harvest crossed 12,000 MT. The last two years also saw harvests crossing 12,000 MT. "Keeping in mind the delicate freshness of the fruit, the railways had made special arrangements. This parcel van reaches Bandra Terminus from Jammu in a record time of just 33 hours. Such fast delivery not only preserves the quality of the cherries, but also ensures that the people of Mumbai get the taste of fresh cherries picked straight from the orchards," said a senior northern railways official. He said Indian Railways is committed to ensuring that the hard work of J&K's orchardists gets the right price and a nationwide market....