A Railway Line Marks Kashmir's Apple Heartland

As survey pillars rise across apple orchards in south Kashmir, farmers fear the loss of land, trees, and income. This is what the railway project looks like from the ground.

- Dr. Raja Muzaffar Bhat

I stood in an apple orchard in Kunsoo, Shopian, watching yellow-painted masonry pillars rise from the soil.

They looked out of place, sharp and final, as if someone had drawn lines through a living landscape.

Each pillar marked the proposed path of a new railway line.

For the families around me, each pillar also marked a question about tomorrow.

Kunsoo lies about 20 kilometres from Kakapora in Pulwama. A wide road already links the two places. Buses, trucks, and private vehicles move through it every day.

Despite this, the government plans a 27-kilometre railway line between Awantipora and Shopian.

The Railways Ministry approved a Final Location Survey for this line, along with four other railway projects in Kashmir. The announcement came in Parliament in December 2023.

The proposal reads like progress, but the land and people tell a different story.

I visited several villages along the proposed route with members of the Jammu and Kashmir Climate Action Group.

We walked through Babhar, Keegam, Check Niltrisal, Check Nazninpora, and Kunsoo. Everywhere, people spoke about the same worries.

Landholdings here remain small. Apple orchards cover most of the farmland. Families depend on two or three kanals of land for income, food, education, and dignity.

Over the years, nearly 80 percent of agricultural land in this belt has shifted to apple farming. This shift helped families survive uncertain times. The orchards now stand fully grown, productive, and deeply tied to local life.