Each district is to identify a food product, with special focus on perishable farm produce, cereal-based product, or a food product widely produced in the district and their allied sectors.
The scheme is to facilitate entrepreneurs, in terms of procurement of inputs, common Services and Marketing of the product.
It will also provide a framework for value chain development and alignment of support . More than one cluster of products can be set up in a district.
The university tea gardens will soon undergo a transformation with the addition of a cafeteria. This was disclosed by Prof HK Chaudhary, Vice-Chancellor, CSK HP Agriculture-notes-for-state-psc-exams”>Agriculture University, here on Thursday.
He said a plan was envisaged to link the university tea gardens with tea tourism, excursions, etc. The Vice-Chancellor visited Orthodox Tea Garden of the Department of Tea Husbandry & Technology and sought details about the ongoing activities like processing of Orthodox Black and Green Tea. Prof Chaudhary said the tea produced in the hill state had been accepted for its high-standard quality and taste by several experts and had got wider acceptability in urban areas of the country.
The work to construct the states first flower mandi at Agricultural Produce Marketing Committee (APMC), Parwanoo has begun with 10 shops and an auction platform to be constructed till June-end.
Floriculture is practiced in Shimla, Sirmaur, Solan, Chamba, Bilaspur, Kullu, Mandi and Kangra districts as part of crop diversification by the people to supplement their income. About 650 hectares of land is under floriculture in the state out of which 98 per cent area is under protected cultivation while 86 hectares is under shaded net houses.
The natural agro climatic conditions in most parts of the state are ideal for production of flowers and its planting material.
On the recommendation of the , Himachal Pradesh University (HPU), Shimla, has extended its jurisdiction to the entire state and will conduct exams in all 12 districts. The Department of Higher Education issued a notification in this regard.
The Tribune had highlighted the issue that the HPU, Shimla, would not open its examination centres in all those five districts for students studying through ICDEOL (International Centre for Distance Education and Open Learning) of the HPU, which come under the jurisdiction of Sardar Patel University, Mandi. Due to that the students of Mandi, Kullu, Lahaul and Spiti, Kangra and Chamba districts were required to visit Shimla or some other districts to appear in exams, which will cost them time and Money.
According to the notification issued by the Department of Higher Education, the ICDEOL of HPU will conduct its examinations in all 12 districts. Therefore, students will be able to appear in exams in their respective districts as before.
During the pandemic Himachal Road Transport Corporation (HRTC) has suffered a loss of around Rs 840 crore. has provided financial grant of Rs 940 crore to ensure the smooth functioning of HRTC and timely payment of wages and salaries to employees. Transport minister Bikram Singh Thakur informed this while briefing journalists in Shimla on Saturday after HRTCs board of directors meeting.
He said it was also decided to bring 989 piece-meal workers under government contract according to the availability of vacant posts. He said in the first phase, preference to ITI with five years experience, non-ITI with six years experience will be given.
The state has produced over four crore apple boxes this season. Its only the second time the state has crossed the four-crore mark. The production had gone beyond four crore boxes for the first time in 2010 when the state had produced 8,92,112 MT, which translates into around 4.50 crore boxes.
Apple growers are not too enthused with the steadily increasing production
Citing the continual slump in the market this year after August 15, the growers feel the successive governments havent created the required Marketing structure to ensure remunerative prices to them
The production had gone beyond four crore boxes for the first time in 2010
In Himachal Pradesh, 55.6% of eligible Population has been fully vaccinated against Covid-19. The state has 55.23 lakh people eligible for Covid vaccination, of which 30,71,853 persons have been given the second dose.
With the target achievement of 102.8%, tribal Kinnaur district is leading in the state, while tribal Lahaul-Spiti district is in second place with target achievement of 82.1%. Solan district is in third place with 73.6% of the vaccination target achieved.
Kinnaur district has become first in the country to administer both doses of Covid-19 vaccine to its entire eligible population.
Compared to tribal districts, rest of the districts in the state were far behind. Districts like Chamba, Mandi and Sirmaur are the laggards. Bilaspur district has given the second dose to 64.7%, Una 61.3%, Shimla 60.2%, Hamirpur 56.7%, Kullu 53.6%, Mandi 51.8%, Kangra 51.1%, Sirmaur 44% and Chamba 42.5%. A state Health department spokesperson said due to effective Covid-19 vaccination campaign, the government had been successful to a large extent in controlling the pandemic in Himachal.
The lengthy negotiations concluded today and now Shimla residents can look forward to 24×7 water supply and effective sewerage Services in the next few years. The project will be completed by 2026.
The project that aims to provide 24×7 pressure water supply and improve and augment sewerage services in and around the city has a total financial outlay of $250 million (Rs 1,825 crore).
Of the total amount, the will provide $160 million (Rs 1,168 crore) while the State Government will borne the remaining $90 million (Rs 657 crore). Rajneesh said the Urban Development Department managed to secure funding from the World Bank despite fiscal constraints due to Covid-19 pandemic.
Objectives of the project
Augment water supply to Shimla from the Sutlej with additional 67 MLD to meet the demand up to 2050
Bulk water supply to Shimla peri-urban areas to meet the demand of the Special Area Development Authority (SADA) at Kufri, Shoghi, Ghanahatti and additional planning areas up to 2050
24X7 supply to domestic and commercial consumers in the Shimla MC area. Improved sewerage services in the municipal area
Replace the distribution pipe Network in the Shimla MC area and upgrade it to a 24×7 supply system. Also, sewerage will be provided in Mehli-Panthaghati, Tutu and Mashobra.
India has been protecting snow leopards and their habitats through the (PSL). Since 2013, India has been a party of the Global Snow Leopard and Ecosystem Protection (GSLEP) program. In order to protect, India has identified three major landscapes, namely Hemis-Spiti across Ladakh and Himalayas; Nanda Devi-Gangotri in Uttarakhand, And Khangchendzonga-Tawang, which straddles Sikkim and Arunachal Pradesh.
The Snow Leopard Project (PSL) was launched in 2009 to promote an inclusive and participatory approach to protecting snow leopards and their habitats. According to the restoration plan of the Ministry of Environment, Forests and Climate-change”>Climate Change, snow leopards have been included in the list of 21 critically endangered species.
Habitat: Snow leopards inhabit the high Landforms of the Himalayas and trans-Himalayas in five states of Jammu and Kashmir, Himalayas, Uttarakhand, Sikkim and Arunachal Pradesh. In Himachal Pradesh, the snow leopard habitat covers most of Lahaul-Spiti and Kinnaur. Its potential habitat also extends to the upper areas of Shimla, Kuru, Camba and Kangra. Most of these areas are remote areas, and winter also limits accessibility challenges.
The will write to the Union Ministry of Environment and Forest to exclude grasslands and pastures in the lower areas of Himachal, including Kangra, Una and Hamirpur districts, from the Classification of forestland, said Agriculture-notes-for-state-psc-exams”>Agriculture Minister Chander Kumar.
He said, In lower areas of Himachal, all grasslands and pastures have been classified as forestland. It has become impossible for farmers to take their cattle to these pastures for grazing. The government will write to the Union Ministry of Environment and Forest to exclude pastures in villages from the classification of forestland.
Chander Kumar said that the government would also consider procuring goat milk from Gaddi shepherds at a later stage. However, for the time being, the government was planning to procure the cow and buffalo milk, he added.
The Palampur agriculture university has developed a chip that will be installed on all cattle in the state. This chip will carry the entire information about the owners of the cattle. After the installation of chips on all milch animals, the government will start penalising farmers who abandon their cattle.