Bilal Bhat
SRINAGAR 16 September 2026: Days after Awami Reporter exposed an alleged network involved in the illegal movement and online sale of Kashmir saffron corms outside the Valley, the Agriculture Department Kashmir has intensified its crackdown, with Director Agriculture Kashmir Sartaj Ahmad Shah warning farmers, traders and online sellers of strict action against those found violating the rules.
The Director has taken serious note of the findings highlighted by Awami Reporter, particularly the use of online marketplaces and platforms, including IndiaMART, for offering Kashmir saffron corms to buyers outside Jammu and Kashmir.
Sartaj Ahmad Shah said the Agriculture Department is closely monitoring the movement of saffron corms and that notices are being issued to online platforms and concerned sellers to prevent the unauthorised sale and transportation of the valuable planting material outside Kashmir.
The intervention follows the Awami Reporter sting operation in which the newspaper investigated how saffron corms were allegedly being offered and moved outside Kashmir through online channels, raising serious concerns over the depletion of locally available planting material and the possible impact on the Valley’s saffron economy.
The Director said the immediate priority of the Agriculture Department is to ensure that Kashmir has sufficient saffron planting material and that corms are first multiplied within the Valley to meet the requirements of local farmers.
According to the Director, the objective at the present stage is not to allow unrestricted commercial movement of corms outside Kashmir but to build adequate planting material within the Valley. Once the gap between demand and availability is bridged, the issue of allowing farmers to sell corms outside the region can be examined in a regulated manner.
The Agriculture Department has already demonstrated its seriousness by intercepting two consignments of saffron corms. One consignment was intercepted at the airport, while another major consignment weighing approximately 1.8 quintals was intercepted in Pampore.
The action has raised alarm within the department over what officials view as an emerging threat to Kashmir’s saffron cultivation, particularly if large quantities of healthy planting material are continuously taken outside the Valley.
Sartaj Ahmad Shah said the department’s field employees have been placed on heightened vigilance and are keeping a close watch on the movement of saffron corms from major saffron-producing areas.
He warned farmers and traders against becoming part of an illegal trade and said the government would be approached with a proposal for a stricter legal framework to regulate the sale and movement of saffron corms.
The Director also took aim at claims circulating in the market that saffron corms can simply be taken outside Kashmir, placed in containers and multiplied through what is being presented as a special experiment or technology.
The department’s position is that saffron cultivation is highly dependent on agro-climatic conditions, including temperature, soil, moisture and seasonal cycles. Kashmir’s established saffron-growing areas have developed over generations around a particular combination of these conditions.
While saffron is cultivated in several parts of the world, including Iran, Spain, Greece, Afghanistan and other regions, the Director stressed that Kashmir’s own saffron planting material and local cultivation ecosystem need to be protected rather than allowing uncontrolled extraction of corms from the Valley.
Saffron is propagated vegetatively through corms, making healthy corms the fundamental source of multiplication. Scientific literature also recognises that corm multiplication is a relatively slow process and that achieving flowering-size corms requires time and suitable cultivation conditions.
This makes the uncontrolled removal of planting material from Kashmir a matter of particular concern for local growers.
The Agriculture Department’s action comes as Awami Reporter continues to investigate the alleged saffron-corm smuggling network and the role of online marketplaces in facilitating transactions.
The newspaper’s investigation had brought to light how online platforms could potentially be used to connect sellers of Kashmir saffron corms with buyers outside the Valley, raising questions about verification, traceability and regulatory oversight.
Following the exposure, the Agriculture Department has now moved to engage with such platforms and prevent the online trade of saffron corms where the transactions violate applicable regulations.
Sartaj Ahmad Shah also appreciated Awami Reporter for highlighting the issue and bringing the alleged illegal movement of saffron corms to the attention of the authorities and the public.
The appreciation assumes significance as the newspaper’s investigation preceded the department’s intensified intervention against the trade.
The Director said Agriculture Department officials would remain vigilant and that farmers should not be misled by individuals promising easy profits through the sale of saffron corms outside Kashmir.
Officials believe that protecting the Valley’s planting material is essential for safeguarding the long-term interests of saffron growers, particularly at a time when the government is attempting to revive and strengthen Kashmir’s saffron sector.
The proposed stricter law, if approved, could bring greater regulatory control over the procurement, transportation, sale and commercial movement of saffron corms, while providing authorities with a stronger mechanism to act against unauthorised traders and intermediaries.
For now, the Agriculture Department has made its position unequivocal: saffron corms cannot be allowed to leave Kashmir indiscriminately at a time when the Valley itself requires substantial quantities of quality planting material for multiplication and cultivation.
The department’s intensified vigilance, the interception of two consignments—including the approximately 1.8-quintal Pampore consignment—and the proposed legal framework mark a significant escalation in the government’s response following Awami Reporter’s exposure.
The message from Director Agriculture Kashmir Sartaj Ahmad Shah is clear: those involved in the unauthorised trade or movement of saffron corms will face strict action.
