The government has invited suggestions from public, industries, trade and farmer bodies for the state Budget, an official spokesperson said here today.
A web portal on the Finance Department website has been launched for suggestions. The suggestions could be sent by email to budgetidea.hp@gmail.com or by letter to the Additional Chief Secretary, Finance, Room No. 524, Armsdale Building, HP Secretariat, Shimla by February 15
The beneficiaries of the tourism here alleged that various governments had failed to harness the potential of tourism, which is the backbone of the economy of the state.
They said that most of the tourist hotspots and activities had been created by the masses themselves and the only job the current government had done was to earn revenue from these and impose regulations. They further added that even basic amenities like toilets were not available in most of the tourist spots. The condition of the roads was pitiable and the rail connectivity was a far off dream, proposals for which were underway for the past many decades.
According to State Project Implementing Unit, total of 1,33,056 farmers are practicing natural farming in the state, either partially or fully, including 12,000 apple orchardists.
Apple grower Shakuntala Sharma in upper Shimla in Himachal Pradesh has reasons to smile. The apples she produced under natural conditions without the use of chemicals and fertilisers have fetched a record price of over Rs 100 per kg.
Shakuntalas orchard is located in Theog area, some 40 km from here. She is growing apples by adopting the Subhash Palekar Natural Farming (SPNF), a technique to do cultivation through non-chemical use, and this concept is gaining ground in the hill state where producers are particularly vulnerable to impacts of the Climate crisis, such as extreme heat, deficit and pest attacks.
According to the State Project Implementing Unit, a total of 1,33,056 farmers are practicing natural farming in the state, either partially or fully, involving 7,609 hectare. This includes 12,000 apple orchardists.
Governor Shiv Pratap Shukla asked scientists to come out of their institutes and make farmers aware about natural farming and assist them adopt this method during his visit to the Regional Research and Training Center (RHR&TC), Mashobra.
The Governor evinced keen interest in the display orchard at the centre, which has been developed as a model of natural farming. While interacting with farmers and scientists on the issue of Natural Farming-Safe Option at the centre, the Governor said the farmers adopting natural farming were not only increasing their income but were also helping in raising the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) of the state.
The Lahaul and Spiti District Administration has urged the state and Union Government to do away with the process of receiving approval under the Forest conservation Act (FCA) for construction of the border roads.
The approval under the FCA is pending with the Ministry of Environment and Forest for widening of the strategically important Sumdo-Kaza-Gramphu road in the tribal district of Lahaul and Spiti.
The Union Government has entrusted the task of widening the Sumdo-Kaza-Gramphu road to the Border Roads Organisation. The survey has been completed by the BRO for the purpose.
Covid impacted the domestic and foreign tourist arrival in Himachal Pradesh in 2020, and also in 2021.
According to figures, recently placed in the Rajya Sabha, the number of domestic tourists had dropped from over 1.68 crore in 2019 to mere around 31 lakh in 2020 in Himachal. The number of tourists increased in 2020 but not much, compared to 2019. In 2021, Himachal received around 56 lakh tourists.
Similarly, the foreign tourist arrival was also majorly affected due to Covid as the state saw a major decline in their numbers in in 2020 and 2021.
While in 2019, around 3.82 lakh foreign tourists had arrived in Himachal, the numbers dropped to around 42,000 in 2020 and touched a low of just 4,932 in 2021.
In 2021, Nadu received the highest number of domestic visitors followed by Uttar Pradesh, Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka and Maharashtra. These states accounted for about 65.41% of the domestic tourist visits in the country.
Punjab received the maximum foreign tourists in 2021, almost 30% of the total visits, followed by Maharashtra, Delhi, Karnataka, and Kerala. These five states accounted for about 69% of the total foreign tourist visits in 2021.
Hamirpur has been ranked number one in https://exam.pscnotes.com/good-Governance“>Good Governance among all 12 districts of Himachal Pradesh with Bilaspur and Kullu ranking second and third, respectively.
The ranking has been finalised on the basis of secondary data of 12 districts, with focus on seven themes, 19 subjects and 75 indicators. Himachal is the first state in the country to have started assessing the quality of governance in vital sectors. The District Good Governance Index (HPDGGI) Annual Report-2020, prepared by the Department of Economics and Statistics.
In one of the key areas related to Women and children, Solan tops with a score of 0.709, whereas Kangra is at the bottom (0.461). Una, Sirmaur, Lahaul-Spiti, Chamba, Mandi and Kangra districts fall below the state Average of 0.589.
The Percentage of institutional delivery is the highest in Hamirpur (97.6 per cent) and the lowest in Chamba (72 per cent). Kullu, Solan and Una have achieved 100 per cent immunisation of children.
The spread of a parasitic disease in cherry trees has left horticulturists worried inHimachal Pradesh, raising concerns of a threat to the states Rs 200-crore, cherry-growing economy.
The infestation of phytoplasma parasites was first observed in cherry trees in June and July this year, but farmers were unfamiliar with it and did not worrt at the time. A team of scientists then in September confirmed the presence of phytoplasma parasites, which cause a systemic disease in cherry trees.
It was decided that the entire cherry-growing region, including Thanedar, Baghi and Narkanda, would be mapped in three categories red, yellow and green. Based on severity of infection, red zone will be where more than 80% trees have died, yellow zone will be where more than 60% trees have died, and green zone will be where no infection has been found.
Shimla residents will get round the clock high-pressure tap water supply by 2025. The Board of Directors of Shimla Jal Prabandhan Nigam Limited (SJPNL) awarded the tender for the project to Suez India for Rs 683 crore. The company will complete the project by 2025.
The round the clock water supply is one of the three components of the over Rs 1,800 crore -funded Shimla Water Supply and Sewerage Services. The other two components are Bulk Water Supply from the Sutlej river and strengthening and extension of sewerage services in the city and nearby areas. While the work on bulk water supply has already begun, tenders for augmentation of sewerage services will be floated shortly.
To ensure round the clock water supply, around 70 per cent of the pipes of the current distribution Network will be replaced with broader pipes. Also, around 40 storage tanks up to the capacity of 5 million litre will be built across the city to ensure regular and smooth distribution. Besides, the distribution system will be digitalised.
The Himachal Pradesh government will be setting up a Central-funded Murrah buffalo farm with an outlay of Rs 506.45 lakh for the genetic upgrading and extension Services, state Animal Husbandry Minister Virender Kanwar said.
The breeding farm, which will produce the high-quality fertile and disease-free bovine stock, will be set up by the Himachal Pradesh Livestock and Poultry Development Board in Burnoh in Una district.
The Murrah buffalo is the most preferred choice of many dairy farmers.
The Minister said the aim of the farm is to produce high-yielding calves to enhance the overall milk production.
The native Murrah breed, nationally recognized as an indigenous by the National Bureau of Animal Genetic Resources in Karnal, is of its distinct characteristics and constitutes 359,979 (55 per cent) of the total 646,565 buffalo Population in the state.
The state will set up three ultra-modern sheds at an initial cost of Rs 75 lakh to rear 50 high-genetic buffaloes, comprising 30 adult and 20 heifers.
The freshly calved high pedigreed 30 adult female buffaloes in first or second lactation and 20 disease-free heifers will be purchased from government farms.
The state will high grade semen to farmers and the surplus will be supplied to neighbouring states — Haryana, Punjab, Delhi and Uttar Pradesh — to meet the growing demand, said Kanwar.
The Murrah buffalo farm will be equipped with scientific Waste Management and rainwater harvesting facilities and a fodder farm.
The fodder production will be undertaken with a cost of Rs 15 lakh to reduce the cost of rearing the animals so as to make the project economically viable and the dung is to be used as organic fertilizer manure for green fodder cultivation.