Shimla, Jan. 13 -- Apple growers and farmers' organisations from Himachal Pradesh on Tuesday cautioned that the free trade agreements (FTAs) being pursued by the BJP-led Central Government under Prime Minister Narendra Modi would severely hurt domestic horticulture, particularly apple cultivation, and threaten the livelihoods of nearly 1.5 million farming families in Himachal Pradesh, Jammu and Kashmir, and Uttarakhand.
Leaders of various organisations, including the Himachal Kisan Sabha, Sanyukt Kisan Manch, Himachal Apple Growers Association, Progressive Growers Association and Plum Growers Association, urged the Chief Minister to take a firm stand against the proposed reduction of import tariffs on apples and other agricultural products...