Saffron is known for its special aroma, powerful flavour and also as a colouring agent. It is usually grown and cultivated in late autumn. In Pampore area in south Kashmir, it is a festival-like atmosphere as people including men and women, young and old are enthusiastically involved in saffron cultivation.
Saffron petals are purple in colour, but their stigmas are either orange-red, or deep red. This is due to the content of Crocetin, a combination of Apocarotenoid dicarboxylic acid found in the Crocus flower and its Glycoside called Crocin. The crop has a honey-like smell and a delicately musky taste.
Pampore in Pulwama district is known as the saffron capital of the region. Here, Kashmiri saffron (Crocus Sativus Kashmirianus) is harvested once a year from late October till mid-November.
Out of a total 5,707 hectares of land that is under saffron cultivation in Kashmir, over 90 percent is grown in Pampore. The remaining nine or ten percent is grown in central Kashmir’s Budgam and Srinagar districts.
A Brighter Kashmir team visited Samboora village in Pampore to interact with saffron cultivators and local agriculture officials.
Faizan, a cultivator, said saffron is known for its special aroma and has to be cultivated on time.
“During the saffron harvesting season, we make it a point to call on family and friends to help and assist us. All, including small children, participate happily in the harvesting process and everybody enjoys this activity. We are happy doing it,” he said.
“Pampore is famous for its saffron or ‘Red Gold’ cultivation. There are not many other areas in J&K that grow this crop. The cultivation of this crop starts from the third week of October and lasts for about 15 days,” he said.
Faizan said his family and others were once solely involved in this activity to earn a living but now they are wisely diversifying, taking up other jobs to earn money.
Azad Ahmed Bhatt, another saffron cultivator in Pampore, said changes in climatic conditions have compromised the ability to grow saffron the way they used to do in the past.
“Fluctuations in the pricing of the saffron crop also affects us; it should at least be fixed at Rs.300/- or Rs.350/- per gram,” he said.
Saffron is primarily used in the preparation of Kashmiri Kahwa and Kashmiri Wazwan. It is used for religious and medicinal purposes also. It is really beneficial to all who use it.
An agriculture department official said they take pains to monitor saffron and other crop cultivation regularly. “We planted the saffron crop last year and we remain connected to the farmers in every possible way. We get regular feedback from the farmers on how the crop is faring, how good is the flowering process, get to know their requirements, etc., including ways to promote integrated management, IPMs, irrigation, etc.”
“The weather plays an important role in the saffron crop’s flowering. So if the temperature dips because of rains or snowfall, the crop cultivation will suffer. We need a consistent temperature range of between 19 to 21 degrees to ensure a good saffron harvest. A link between our farmers and the agri-tourism sector is very important to maintain to benefit all stakeholders,” he said.
The official said they are expecting a good harvest in comparison to previous years. “There was a time when Kashmir was regarded as the saffron capital of India and I hope that day will come again soon. Our long term aim is to ensure appropriate facilitation for farmers and restore saffron as one of the heritage crops of India”.