REPORTS / MEMIOGRAPH

Horticulture in Himachal Pradesh, C.S. Vaidya, and Ranveer Singh, AERC.

Horticulture has emerged as a main commercial activity in the farming sector of the state, which has been instrumental in the transformation and development of the rural of the state. The study was conducted with the objectives to study the agro-economic conditions and horticulture production in the state to analyze the trends in area. It was observed that Shimla, Kullu, Kangra and Kinnaur in terms of production, whereas Shimla, Kullu, Kangra and Mandi are the leading districts in terms of area under the apple. The area and production of the apple in the state have been increasing at a growth of 3.97 percent per annum respectively. The highest growth was recorded in district Kinnaur in respect of apple and production. This means that the state apple gaining more popularity and are in greater demand in different parts of the country. This indicates the sustainable market of apple in the country. The district wise analyses indicate that export from Kullu, Mandi and Kinnaur etc. is decreasing over the years where from Shimla, main apple producer, was declining. The factors identified for future research and critical evaluation for the development of horticulture sector include small holding size, inadequacy of irrigation, global warming, erratic rains, adverse market situation and inaccessibility to extension services, labour shortage and brand preference etc.

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