Kashmir cracks walnut success code, turns to medium-sized, grafted trees

KOKERNAG: In Gohan village, around 100km south of Srinagar, Shabir Ahmad was among many harvesting walnuts from a towering tree. The work has become increasingly difficult. “My back aches now,” Ahmad said. J&K produces 3.5 lakh tonnes of walnuts annually, around 90% of the country’s total output.Like other villagers, Ahmad had no safety gear and he was proud of it. “We have been doing it for centuries,” said Ahmad, also a clerk at a local court. However, the bravado doesn’t help in harvesting seasons. Dr. Mohd Yaqoob Bhat, a surgeon at Paras Hospital in Srinagar, said Valley healthcare units treat dozens of patients each year after falls from walnut trees, some with serious spinal injuries. “There is no mechanism to address the issue,” Bhat said.Ahmad’s younger brother sold one walnut for one rupee and no two fruits are similar. For generations, Kashmir’s walnut trees have been grown from seeds.