Gardeners, traders demand Afghan-Indo air-corridor reopening

KANDAHAR CITY (Pajhwok):  Chamber of Commerce officials, gardeners and traders say the air-corridor between Afghanistan and India should be launched again soon from southern Kandahar province where fruit harvest has begun.

They say flights should be launched in the beginning of harvests so that fruits and other agricultural products were sent to Indian markets in a timely manner.

The demand for air corridor comes as no flight has taken place from Kandahar to India during the past two years.

Haji Nasrullah Zaheer, director of the Kandahar chamber of commerce and industry, told Pajhwok Afghan News that the flights between Afghanistan and India started in 1396 solar year when hundreds of tonnes of dried and fresh fruit were flown to India.

He said they were also unaware of the main reason for the delay of the flights for the past two years, but said they had worked hard during the period to reopen the Afghanistan-India corridor.

He said he had informed the central government at the beginning of the last solar year that traders of dried and fresh fruits were ready to export through the air corridor but had not received any response.

According to him, the total export of fresh and dried fruits from Kandahar during the whole years increased to more than 200,000 tonnes, so there is a serious need to transport them by land as well as via air corridor.

He urged the central and provincial authorities to listen to the voices of horticulturists and businessmen in the province and facilitate flights through the Afghanistan-India air-corridor before the fruit harvest begins.

Zaheer said Kandahar traders were ready to export up to 40 tonnes of dried and fresh fruit every week.

He also called the opening of land routes between some countries and Afghanistan an important development but demanded that these routes should not remain on papers alone.

He also said about 200 trucks of dried and fresh fruits were exported through the Chabahar port this year but Afghan traders were facing difficulties in exporting through this port.

He said US sanctions on Iran had prevented Afghan traders from remittances to Afghanistan after exports, a serious problem shared with the President but no action had been taken.

Haji Nani Agha, head of the Kandahar Fresh Fruit Traders’ Association, told Pajhwok that Kandahar fruits were unique in terms of flavor and natural tests so many countries around the world demanded it but the problem was the lack of roads.

According to him, when the Afghanistan-India air corridor was opened four years ago, both farmers and businessmen were happy and thought that years later they would find an air route to export their product but unfortunately it did not last long.

He said that if the air corridor was re-facilitated, they would be able to deliver fruits in their original quality to Indian markets in a short period of time.

According to him, a few months ago, Kandahar Governor Rohullah Khanzada, during a meeting with businessmen, assured them that flights related to the corridor would resume.

He said the authorities should fulfill their promise so that gardeners and traders could take their fruits to foreign markets and avoid spoilage.

He said about 70 percent of the country’s export of fresh and dried fruits were from Kandahar and the remaining 30 percent were from other provinces of the country.

Export through air corridors was important because the fruits in their original quality are delivered to the respective markets in the short period of time, according to him.

Growers of grape, pomegranate and other fruits in some districts of Kandahar also demanded the reopening of the air corridor.

Haji Faiz Mohammad, a gardener in Arghandab district, told Pajhwok that on the one hand due to drought this year, water from the Dahla dam could not be released and on the other severe conflict over the past six months damaged homes and gardens.

In such a scenario, he said, facilitating air corridor flights would be a major help to farmers and gardeners in Arghandab, Zhari, Panjwai and other war-torn districts.

A few months ago then director general of the Civil Aviation Authority, Mohammad Qasim Wafaizada visited Kandahar and promised in a meeting with the provincial governor that fresh and dried fruits would once again fly from Kandahar airport to the air corridor.

Kandahar Governor Rohullah Khanzada told Pajhwok, “I have been working since day one to reopen the corridor and provide opportunities for our traders to connect with other countries.”

He added that despite the difficulties, he was able to start flights from Kandahar to a number of countries and was still making efforts in this regard.

Although the exact date of resumption of flights related to the corridor has not been determined, the governor said that the export of dried and fresh fruits from Ahmad Shah Baba airport would soon resume.

He added that Kandahar is an industrial, commercial and transit province and major investments should be considered to boost industry and trade.

Sa/ma

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