Transporting apple boxes from Himachal to cost more

Transporting apple boxes from Himachal Pradesh to markets in the rest of the country, during the upcoming harvest will cost around 20 per cent more due to the recent hike in diesel prices.

This decision has been taken at a meeting between the state government officials and the state truck operators union in Shimla.

The three month long harvest will start by the middle of July. Due to huge demands, trucks come from across northern India to transport fruits to markets all over India. It will now cost Rs 63 to transport a 22 kg apple box from Rohru, a well know apple growing area in Shimla to Delhi and Rs 53 from Kotkhai to Delhi, an official of the state government said.

The apple crop in Himachal Pradesh is expected to be around a third of last year’s record production. And even this standing crop has been damaged by frequent hailstorms resulting in reduced market value.