Shimla, March 12: While Himachal Pradesh Horticulture Minister Jagat Singh Negi on Wednesday proudly showcased profits of the state-run Himachal Pradesh Horticultural Produce Marketing and Processing Corporation, angry apple growers say the claims ring hollow as the corporation is yet to clear crores of rupees in pending payments for culled apples procured under the Market Intervention Scheme (MIS).
Negi, who chaired the 220th meeting of the HPMC Board of Directors in Shimla, announced that the corporation recorded a turnover of Rs 111 crore and a net profit of Rs 6.65 crore during 2024-25.
The minister described the performance as a sign of improved financial management and also approved a sub-committee to prepare a marketing strategy under HPMC Vice-Chairman Surender Sharma.
But orchardists across the state are asking a blunt question: how can the corporation claim profits when payments to apple growers remain unpaid for years?
Under the MIS, HPMC procures culled apples from farmers during market crashes to support prices. However, growers say payments worth crores are still pending, not just from the last season but stretching back several years.
Many small and marginal orchardists, who sold their produce to HPMC in good faith, claim they are still running from pillar to post to recover their dues.
“The government keeps announcing schemes, committees and infrastructure projects, but the most basic obligation—paying farmers for their produce—remains unfulfilled,” said several orchardists, calling the profit announcement “an insult to struggling apple growers.”
The irony has not been lost on the farming community. In the same meeting where profits were highlighted, the minister directed officials to explore Direct Benefit Transfer (DBT) for MIS payments to ensure transparency—a move farmers say should have been implemented years ago if the government was serious about clearing dues.
Growers have also raised serious allegations regarding HPMC’s functioning. Many claim the corporation procures horticultural inputs and products from open markets at cheaper rates but sells them to apple farmers at higher prices, allegedly to recover operational losses and offset pending payment liabilities.
“This is a vicious cycle,” said an orchardist. “Farmers are not paid on time, and later they are forced to buy supplies from the same corporation at inflated prices.”
Meanwhile, Negi also approved a proposal to set up a grading and packing line with Controlled Atmosphere storage in the Chopal region, a move projected to strengthen apple infrastructure.
But farmers say such announcements mean little until their long-pending MIS payments are cleared.
For thousands of apple growers across Himachal’s orchard belt—from Chopal and Rohru to Kotkhai and Jubbal—the message to the government is simple: clear the dues first, celebrate profits later.
