India: Kashmir’s saffron production takes a hit, farmers forced to switch occupation

The Khrew area of Pampore in Kashmir’s Pulwama district was once a hub of saffron cultivation. But now, only one saffron farmer cultivates the beautiful flowers which yield the world’s costliest spice. “Almost everyone in Khrew used to grow saffron back in the 1980s, but these days I am the only one engaged in this cultivation,” said Mohammad Maqbool Shah from Khrew, locally known as ‘Saffron Town’. With 15 kanals of saffron land, Mohammad Maqbool is extremely worried about the future of saffron as an industry and the future of Pampore as one of the leading saffron producers. (One kanal is an eighth of an acre or 5,445 square feet.) The primary reason for Maqbool’s worry and the rapid decline in saffron cultivation in the region is the numerous cement industries present in the area. “Both the quantity and quality of the whole Pampore saffron field have been damaged by these industries. I see a very bleak future for saffron growing in Pampore,” he said. The stigma (male ...