Hundreds of apple farmers gathered outside the Himachal Pradesh Secretariat in Shimla on Tuesday to protest the government’s move to remove apple-laden trees growing on encroached forest land.
The protest came just a day after the Supreme Court put a stay on a previous High Court order that had directed the removal of such fruit-bearing orchards.
Farmers were joined by members of the Himachal Kisan Sabha and the Himachal Pradesh Seb Utpadak Sangh. The protest was led by former Theog MLA and CPI(M) leader Rakesh Singha. Protesters also marched from the Talland area to the Secretariat.
The demonstration caused traffic disruptions in the area for a few hours, causing inconvenience to commuters.
Earlier this month, the Himachal Kisan Sabha and Seb Utpadak Sangh had announced a large-scale protest against the forest department’s action to uproot apple orchards following the High Court's order.
However, on Monday, the Supreme Court stayed the High Court's decision, offering temporary relief to the farmers.
Chief Minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu had earlier said on July 17 that the state government was not in favour of cutting down apple-laden trees. He emphasised that farmers should be given time to harvest and auction their produce.
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