“When young people leave the farms, a piece of Kashmir’s history walks away with them”
Dr.Roohi Jan
The apple orchards in Kashmir are brimming with fruit on a cool fall morning. Carefully navigating between tree rows, farmers fill wooden crates that will shortly be transported throughout India. A reflection of the Valley’s long history of agriculture, the sight seems eternal. However, there is a disturbing reality hidden beneath this familiar scenery. Many of the young people who would have inherited these orchards are making other decisions about their futures. They are migrating outside of Jammu and Kashmir, starting enterprises, going to college, moving from villages to cities, or looking for government positions. Their exodus poses a pertinent question, who will grow food for Kashmir in the next two decades.Agriculture has been the backbone of Kashmir’s economy, culture and identity for centuries. For generations of families, farming has been a means of sustenance. From paddy fields across the Valley to saffron farms in Pampore and apple orchards in Shopian, Pulwama, Baramulla and Kupwara. But now the sector is facing a number of challenges at once declining profitability, climate uncertainty, labour shortages, fragmented land ownership, changing aspirations of young people and greater competition from other employment sectors. It concerns the future of food security, rural livelihoods, environmental sustainability and the preservation of a way of life that has defined Kashmir for centuries. Agriculture and its allied sectors continue to play a significant role in the economy of Jammu and Kashmir. They are supported by food production, horticulture, dairy farming, livestock, fisheries and thousands of small businesses involved in transportation, storage, packaging and marketing. Kashmir is world famous for its apples, walnuts, almonds, cherries, saffron and dry fruits. Apple cultivation sustains a huge network of growers, labourers, traders, transporters, cold storage operators and exporters. Farming has become more and more difficult, even though it is of economic importance. Input costs are increasing. Costs of fertilisers, pesticides, machinery, packaging material, fuel and transport have all increased. Farmers face similar challenges with unpredictable income due to fluctuating market prices.
To young people weighing the relative merits of a career in agriculture against engineering, medicine, teaching, banking, information technology, or entrepreneurship, farming is beginning to look like a high risk, uncertain reward activity.Parents who work the fields have for decades encouraged their children to enter professional fields rather than continue the agricultural tradition. Education is seen as a route to economic security and social mobility.For many young graduates, agriculture is synonymous with hard work, uncertain income and dependence on the vagaries of weather. Private sector jobs or business opportunities or government employment appear more attractive.This is a change we can understand.The economy is changing at a fast pace and today’s young people grow up in an environment where opportunities in digital technology, online business, tourism, healthcare, education and financial services are available in ways that previous generations could never imagine. Social media has also altered our views of success.
Choosing agriculture will no longer be viewed as settling for less but rather as an investment in a bright future when it offers innovation, equitable rewards, access to technology, and entrepreneurial chances.In the end, young people are not solely responsible. To make agriculture profitable, it is equally the responsibility of governments, markets, financial institutions, educational institutions, and society. Many educated young people may decide to pursue farming if it becomes profitable, technologically sophisticated, and socially respected not because they have no other choice, but rather because it provides them with a fulfilling and long term profession. This change makes sense and should not be seen as a sign of the younger generation’s shortcomings. Therefore, the issue is to make farming a profession that can compete with other job prospects rather than to convince young people to give up on their goals. Climate change is probably the biggest concern for farmers.
“Modern agriculture needs technical knowledge, entrepreneurship, and innovation to encourage educated youth to reimagine farming rather than abandon it. Currently, farmer income remains modest because producers primarily sell raw goods instead of processed, value-added products like dried apples, walnut oil, cherry preserves, and saffron cosmetics. While the harvest still symbolizes hope, the future of Kashmir’s agriculture and food security depends on whether the younger generation finds dignity, prosperity, and purpose in farming.”
Kashmir has experienced noticeable changes in snowfall patterns, distribution of rainfall, temperature and seasonal cycles. Winters have gotten more unpredictable. The snow that used to fall and help recharge water supplies has diminished over the years. Spring weather has gotten less dependable.Fruit blossom damaged by unseasonal hailstorms. Heavy rainfall impacts harvests. Heatwaves stress crops that developed under cooler climate conditions.Apple growers report changes in flowering periods and harvest schedules. Rice farmers are concerned about water availability in the critical growing period.The uncertainty of the climate makes planning for agriculture much more difficult than it was a generation ago.
Young people witnessing these risks may decide that farming is no longer a secure livelihood. Another problem is hidden under the surface, land fragmentation. Agricultural land is inherited over generations and holdings get divided among the heirs. Farms that could once support large families become smaller plots.Small farms frequently find it difficult to make enough money.Mechanization becomes challenging.Investing becomes hazardous.There is a decrease in productivity.Eventually, some families sell their farmland to build homes or businesses.Some people lease their fields because their younger relatives no longer want to work them.As a result, agricultural sustainability gradually deteriorates.There is a growing scarcity of agricultural labor, according to farmers in Kashmir.Particularly in agriculture, seasonal laborers are still crucial throughout the planting and harvesting seasons.Production costs increase when labor becomes more expensive or scarce.Due to the relocation of younger family members, older farmers often continue to work well into their sixties and seventies.There are important concerns about this demographic disparity.Young orchard owners increasingly understand that successful horticulture today requires business acumen, technology adoption, financial planning and market intelligence not just agricultural skills.
So the future might be less about if youth stay in farming, and more about if farming itself becomes economically attractive. Women have always been an integral part of Kashmir’s agriculture. They transplant rice seedlings, harvest crops, tend livestock, process food, and work extensively in household farming. Younger men leave for education or jobs, and women’s workload often increases. But all too often their contribution is not recognised. Better access for women to training, finance, land rights and agricultural technology would do much to strengthen rural resilience. Empowering women farmers is not only a matter of gender equality but is essential to future food production. Agriculture is changing everywhere. Precision farming, satellite monitoring, drones, weather forecasting, mobile advisory services, digital marketplaces and artificial intelligence are all changing the way we produce food. Some of these innovations are starting to be adopted in Kashmir, but there is a long way to go.Technologydriven agriculture could be adopted by the youth who might spurn traditional farming. Think of orchards with sensors. Disease identified by smart phone applications. Live weather alerts. Online marketplaces connecting growers to buyers directly. There is a growing need for technical knowledge, entrepreneurship and innovation in modern agriculture. This opens up opportunities for educated youth to reimagine farming rather than give it up.One of the reasons that farmer income remains modest is that many producers sell raw products rather than processed foods. More emphasis on value addition could turn rural economies. Apples dried fruits, goods that are organic, oil from walnuts, preserves of cherries, cosmetics made with saffron, processed veggies, local goods with a brand. Hope is still symbolized by the apple orchard during harvest season. However, whether or whether young Kashmiris feel that agriculture provides them with dignity, prosperity, and a sense of purpose will determine its destiny in addition to the trees. If they do, the Valley’s crops will continue to support its population and economy. If they don’t, the issue of who will produce Kashmir’s food in 20 years might become much more pressing than anyone can currently conceive.
(The author is General Secretary, J&K Teachers Forum. The views, opinions and conclusions expressed in this article are those of the author and aren’t necessarily in accord with the views of “Kashmir Horizon”)
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