New Delhi, May 25 (IANS) Union Minister of Textiles Giriraj Singh has strongly urged Indian consumers to boycott Turkish apples, citing the country’s support to Pakistan during Operation Sindoor.

“Turkey supports enemy nations, so if people have decided not to eat Turkish apples and instead choose Himachal apples, it’s the right decision,” said the minister while addressing the media during his visit to Himachal Pradesh.

Singh inaugurated the Bob Organics organic fertiliser production unit at Byada in Panchrukhi near Palampur on Saturday. He also interacted with students from the Institute of Himalayan Bioresource Technology (IHBT), gaining insights into the functioning and innovation behind the plant.

Later, the minister visited a traditional pottery-making institute in Andretta, where he tried his hand at shaping clay pots. He appealed to residents to take pride in this ancient art and to expand it as a means of sustainable livelihood.

“This is a part of the Ministry of Textiles. Pottery is a traditional craft that has cultural and economic value,” he said.

Earlier on Wednesday, Himachal Pradesh Chief Minister Sukhvinder Sukhu urged Prime Minister Narendra Modi to double the import duty on apples from the current 50 per cent to discourage their import from Turkey and safeguard the interests of the state’s fruit growers.

The CM urged that quantitative restrictions should also be imposed on imported apples.

In a letter to the Prime Minister, CM Sukhu said Himachal Pradesh is known as the ‘apple bowl’ of the country and is famous for producing delicious varieties of the fruit. The apple is the prime cash crop of the state and generates an income of about Rs 4,500 crore annually.

CM Sukhu said that at present, apples are being imported from nearly 31 countries, and about 5.19 lakh metric tons were imported in 2024, an increase of 500 times compared to 1,100 metric tons imported in 1998. The Chief Minister said apples from Turkey have been flooding the Indian markets in recent years, which has posed a great threat to the apple growers of the country.

When asked about Congress opposing India’s foreign outreach, Giriraj Singh stated that an all-party delegation is visiting 33 countries to counter false narratives spread by Pakistan.

“This is not new. In 1994, Atal Bihari Vajpayee, along with Manmohan Singh and Salman Khurshid, had gone to the UN to fight similar misinformation. If Congress doesn’t understand this and feels frustrated, what can I do?” he said.

–IANS

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