These apples will fall far from the tree

BENGALURU: Watermelon, capsicum and apples... tonnes of kilos of fruits and vegetables, painstakingly planted, tended to and harvested by farmers are going waste due to the COVID-19 outbreak. Which is where Bengaluru boy Anand Sankar who moved to Dehradun to live the countryside life, is trying to help save the apples of the Tons Valley. “The livelihood of people here has been devastated. We mostly depend on tourism but now that is also out of the question for another year at least,” says Sankar who runs a tourism company. 

But moved by the plight of farmers, Sankar came up with a plan to spread word about pre-ordering apples. “Our plan is to help with some immediate money to those who have been rendered unemployed due to loss of tourism income. The idea is for customers to pay approximately 50 per cent of the cost of the apples now, which goes directly into the farmer’s bank account.

The apples will be delivered after the harvest in July,” says Sankar, adding that they’ve received 160 orders within three days, mostly from  Bengaluru, Chennai and Mumbai, out of which 55-60 boxes have been ordered by Bengalureans. All this gives a glimmer of hope. Sankar is also wondering how to save the humble potato, and is thinking on the lines of chips in bulk. 

“We need to look at a different kind of buyer for that,” he says, adding, “We are going to see entire families economically ruined if we don’t do something right away.Those who want to place orders for apples can get details on tons.travel/apples or through WhatsApp on +91-70607-77030.