Overview

• Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha flagged off the JPP‑RCS parcel service from Budgam/Nowgam to Adarsh Nagar, marking a daily, scheduled rail option for perishable cargo.
• The train runs with eight parcel vans of about 23 tonnes each (roughly 180 tonnes total), targets delivery to Delhi in around 23–24 hours, and halts at Bari Brahmana in Jammu, with full‑van online booking available.
• Highway damage from late‑August rains has restricted heavy vehicles on NH44, with reports of 2,000–3,000 fruit trucks stranded and losses estimated from several hundred crores to over ₹1,000 crore.
• Fruit mandis observed a two‑day shutdown as unions demanded unhindered truck passage and relief, while Omar Abdullah pressed the Centre to restore or hand over the highway and to increase parcel train frequency; the LG pledged priority clearance of fruit trucks and said restoration would follow shortly.
• Railways had already moved apple consignments, including a 10‑wagon goods train from Anantnag, and initial Budgam–Delhi parcel runs were fully booked, though growers say far more capacity is needed during peak harvest.