Kashmir accounts for more than 90 per cent of India’s cherry production, with annual output estimated at 12,000-14,000 metric tonnes (file picture) | Photo Credit: IMRAN NISSAR

The season’s first cherry parcel train pulled out from Jammu railway station for Mumbai on Monday, offering Kashmir’s growers a faster route to markets across India for the highly perishable fruit.

The consignment, carrying around 12 tonnes of freshly picked cherries, was loaded into a parcel van attached to Train No. 19028, the Jammu Tawi–Bandra Terminus Vivek Express, and is expected to reach Mumbai in about 33 hours, railway officials said.

“Indian Railways is committed to helping orchardists in Jammu and Kashmir secure better prices and access markets nationwide,” said Uchit Singhal, Senior Divisional Commercial Manager, Jammu. He said special logistical arrangements had been made for the movement of cherries and that adequate parcel vans and other resources had been earmarked to meet traders’ demand during the season.

Kashmir accounts for more than 90 per cent of India’s cherry production, with annual output estimated at 12,000-14,000 metric tonnes.The fruit has a short shelf life, making rapid transportation critical for growers seeking to maximise returns.

Railway authorities plan to transport more than 640 tonnes of cherries to Mumbai during the current season. The Jammu Division of Northern Railway has earmarked 28 parcel vans for services to Bandra Terminus, each capable of carrying about 23 tonnes.

Pilot effort

The initiative builds on last year’s pilot effort, when 14 parcel vans carrying cherries were dispatched from Shri Mata Vaishno Devi Katra railway station to Bandra Terminus, providing growers with faster access to wholesale markets outside the region. Growers welcomed the rail service, saying it would help reduce losses caused by transportation delays. “The cherry parcel train is a welcome step for growers as it will help us send our produce to markets much faster and reduce losses caused by delays on the road,” said Abdul Rashid, a cherry grower from Srinagar.

However, he said that farmers wanted direct parcel train services from locations within the Valley to further cut costs and handling time.

“Farmers in different parts of the Valley would benefit even more if direct parcel train services are introduced closer to the production belts”, Rashid added. 

Published on May 25, 2026