CHANDIGARH: Since the Taliban return and India re-opening dialogue channels with the radical regime, there appears more to New Delhi’s engagement. Onions and garlic are being imported this season from Afghanistan through the Integrated Check-Post (ICP) at the Attari-Wagah border.
Dry fruits, too, are coming in with abundance from the war-torn country. The prices, however, remain on the higher side as India’s festival season has started and orders for Diwali are being placed in advance swiftly. ICP sources said at least one truckload of onions is coming into India after a gap of about three years. One truck carries 20-40 tonnes (20,000 to 40,000 kg) of the kitchen staple as it makes its way from the wholesale market of Kabul to reach ICP via Pakistan.
The crop costs between around Rs 22-24 per kg. The garlic import is much more: at least 10 trucks of the Indian seasoner arrive daily. A kg of it is between Rs 80-140. The reason for a cheaper import is attributed to the damage to the crops on the Indian side due to untimely rain and hailstorms. Most of these vegetables are imported by traders in Punjab and Delhi. They book their consignments with their counterparts in Afghanistan. In about two weeks, the consignment arrives.
Talking with this newspaper, Satish Dhyani, manager at Land Port Authority of India at the ICP said of the 50-55 trucks arriving from Afghanistan, at least 15 carry garlic, a couple of them ferry onions, and the rest carry dry fruits. “About 1,110 tons of various kinds of agricultural material are pouring into India daily. Before mid-August, it was a meagre 450 tonnes,’’ said Dhyani.
“The ICP infrastructure has been upgraded; the passenger terminal is centrally air-conditioned. The power supply to ICP is through solar panels. So, our electricity bill is low,’’ he said. Anil Mehra, a dry fruit merchant based in Amritsar told this newspaper that the prices are on a higher side this season and have not dipped as the crop yield was poor last year in Afghanistan. Almonds from Afghanistan come for Rs 700 per kg, while anjeer (fig) is sold between Rs 750 to Rs 850 per kg. These orders are mainly from Mumbai, Delhi and Indore, sources said.
