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

SRINAGAR: Jammu and Kashmir CM Omar Abdullah, on Monday, made a strong pitch against a bill brought by his own party MLA that seeks to grant landowners the right to cut walnut trees on their property.

Omar said passage of the bill would harm the country’s largest walnut economy, of which Kashmir accounts for about 90 per cent, and would rob J&K of a key part of its identity.

The bill, moved by National Conference legislator from Pahalgam, Altaf Ahmad Wani, sought amendments to the Jammu and Kashmir Preservation of Specified Trees Act, 1969, to allow felling of walnut trees on private land.

Under the 1969 law, no person is allowed to cut a walnut tree, whether on private or state land, without prior permission from the competent authority, and any violation of the law attracts a fine ranging from Rs 1,000 to Rs 10,000.

Defending his bill, Wani said the law is creating a huge problem for landowners as walnut trees occupy significant space, around three trees per kanal (0.05 hectares), and they don’t give reasonable revenue to landowners.

He said walnuts were once a major source of income in Kashmir, but most of the trees have aged and stopped yielding. Wani said harvesting is largely done by the owners themselves, and over the years, many people have been injured and died due to falls from trees during the harvesting. He advocated replacing ageing trees with high-density plantations.

“It is a strange law where I am not allowed to cut a tree standing on my own land. 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 serves a broader purpose of conserving walnut and chinar trees. He said J&K produces about 3.5 lakh metric tonnes of walnuts annually, around 90 per cent of the country’s total output.

The CM said walnut wood is integral to the handicrafts industry, particularly wood carving, and voiced concern that allowing felling of walnut trees could lead to their replacement with concrete buildings. “I am sure once walnut trees are cut, owners will build houses or other structures there,” Omar said, adding that the government could consider changes only if felled trees would be replaced with walnut cultivation on the same land.

Though the walnut industry faces competition from soft-shelled varieties from regions like California, Chile, Kashmiri walnuts are valued for their superior taste. Major export destinations for Kashmiri walnuts include the UAE, Turkey, Iraq, Singapore, Algeria, Qatar, Bhutan, Kuwait, Seychelles and Nigeria.