Omar Abdullah: Omar backs 57-yr-old walnut felling ban law in Assembly, links it to economy, Kashmir’s identity | India News

Jammu and Kashmir CM Omar Abdullah makes strong pitch against amendment of Jammu and Kashmir Preservation of Specified Trees Act, 1969

Srinagar: Chief Minister of Jammu and Kashmir Omar AbdullahOn Monday, he made a strong pitch against a bill brought by his own party’s legislators that seeks to give landowners the right to cut walnut trees on their property.Omar said the passage of the bill would harm the country’s largest walnut economy, of which Kashmir accounts for nearly 90 percent, and rob Jammu and Kashmir of a core part of its identity.The bill, moved by National Conference MLA Altaf Ahmed Wani from Pahalgam, sought amendment of the Jammu and Kashmir Conservation of Certain Trees Act, 1969 to allow cutting of walnut trees on private land.Under the 1969 Act, no person is allowed to cut walnut trees on private or state land without the prior permission of the competent authority and a fine ranging from Rs 1,000 to Rs 10,000 is imposed for violation of the law.Defending his bill, Wani said the law is creating a huge problem for landowners as walnut trees occupy significant space, about three trees per kanal (0.05 hectare) and they do not provide reasonable revenue to landowners.He said walnuts were once a major source of income in Kashmir, but most of the trees have grown old and stopped yielding. Wani said harvesting is largely done by the owners themselves and over the years, many people have been injured and killed by falling trees while harvesting. He recommends replacing older trees with high-density plantings.“It is a strange law where I am not allowed to stand on my own land and cut a tree. One has to knock on many doors to get permission, which has become a source of corruption,” Wani said.Omar, however, defended the restrictions, saying the law served a larger purpose of protecting walnut and sugarcane trees. He said J&K produces about 3.5 lakh metric tonnes of walnuts annually, which is about 90 percent of the country’s total production.The Chief Minister said that walnut wood is an integral part of the handicraft industry, especially wood carving, and expressed concern that allowing the cutting of walnut trees could replace them with concrete buildings. “I am sure that once the walnut trees are cut down, the owners will build houses or other structures there,” Omar said, adding that the government could consider the change only if the cut trees are replaced with walnut cultivation on the same land.Although the walnut industry faces competition from soft-shelled varieties from regions such as California, Chile, Kashmiri walnuts are prized for their superior flavor. Major export destinations for Kashmiri walnuts include the United Arab Emirates, Türkiye, Iraq, Singapore, Algeria, Qatar, Bhutan, Kuwait, Seychelles and Nigeria.