Gilgit-Baltistan is one of the most beautiful regions of Pakistan. Nature has gifted this region with immense beauty and blessings, including the highest peaks, lakes, and largest glaciers, rivers and variety of fruits.
One of the most precious gifts by Allah is the blessing of apricot, the major one among the variety of fruits in Gilgit Baltistan. The region is the largest apricot producing region in Pakistan. Apricot is the most common fruit grown with an average of 15 trees per household and it is estimated there are a total of 2,971,935 apricot trees in GB.
It merits a mention here that apricots are by far the single largest livelihood source with immediate commercial potential for a significant proportion of population in Gilgit-Baltistan.
Moreover, about 40 percent of the rural households in the region annually earn Rs 5,000 to 6,000 from apricot and it's by products.
Apricot has a long and interesting history. It is generally believed that the origin of apricot is in China and Central Asia, where the fruit has been cultivated for food as well as for its therapeutic properties for more than 4,000 years. The apricot tree has also been grown in neighbouring India and Tibet since times immemorial. According to ancient records, the Hunzas, who inhabited the Himalayan Mountains in the northern regions of present-day Pakistan and were acknowledged for their vigour and long life span, cultivated and treasured apricot for its aptitude to foster health for more than 1500 years.
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