Jammu Traders Stare At Rs 700 Crore Loss, Apple Trading Worst Hit

Traders in Jammu are staring at a Rs 700-crore loss this year due to uncertain conditions in the Kashmir Valley, where shops have remained shut for almost two months, following a clampdown by the authorities.
The economies of Jammu and Kashmir regions are intrinsically linked. Traders in Jammu are heavily dependent on Kashmir for supplies and procurement, and many believe the scale of trading is tilted in favour of the Jammu region. Since August 5, when Article 370 was abrogated, traders in Warehouse Mandi in Jammu city have been badly hit.
“We are staring at a trading loss of about Rs 400 crore to Rs 450 crore, by conservative estimates. Our supplies are down to less than 50 percent. Traders haven’t been able to receive payments of about Rs 250 crore for the supplies made,” Deepak Kumar, general secretary, Warehouse Traders Federation, told Forbes India.
The mandi, which houses some of the biggest traders of the state, is the largest supplier of essential commodities to the entire state, including Kashmir. Kumar adds that the daily supply from Jammu to Kashmir was about Rs 50 crore worth, but it has now halved to Rs 20 crore to Rs 25 crore since August 5. Earlier, about 50 trucks would leave the mandi for the Valley every day; now, the figure is down to 20.