Himachal Chief Minister Jai Ram Thakur on Tuesday launched Rs 1010.60 crore phase-II of the HP Crop Diversification Promotion Project (HPCDP) supported by Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) for the state.
The Chief Minister while presiding over the launching ceremony at Dharamshala, said that the State Government is committed for the development of rural areas as more than 90 percent of the total population lives in these areas and about 70 percent of the population is dependent on the agriculture sector for livelihood.
Despite limited financial resources and slowdown due to the Corona pandemic, the present State Government has launched various new schemes to promote irrigation, agriculture, horticulture, forestry and allied sectors besides ensuring all-round and equitable development of Himachal, he said.
Thakur said that the phase-II of the JICA aided crop diversification project would be implemented in all the 12 districts of state and would give a big boost to the socio-economic status of farmer's families.
The phase-I of the project being implemented in five districts of Mandi, Kangra, Hamirpur, Bilaspur and Una on pilot basis since 2011 has virtually transformed the economy of the farmers in these districts. The main objective of this project is to disseminate a successful model of crop diversification and increase the vegetable area in the project area from 2500 hectares to 7000 hectares by 2031, he said.
The Chief Minister further said that in order to fulfil the vision and commitment towards rapid development of the state, the government is mobilizing resources from all possible sources including the Central Government, external funding agencies like JICA, World Bank and Asian Development Bank etc. The State Government considers JICA to be the most important source of financial support and partner in development of Himachal, he added.
Thakur also said that there is a huge potential for cultivation of off-season vegetables in this region. The State Government has created a strong network of market yards to ensure remunerative prices to the farmers, but still a lot more such Mandis are required in the state so that farmers could have easy access for marketing their products and getting better prices.
Both India and Japan have developed systems of sustainable production instead of bulk production of food grains. The United Nations has also set goals for sustainable development which are to be achieved by 2030, he added.
He expressed happiness that Himachal Pradesh is collaborating with Japan on agricultural projects that have certainly benefited the farming communities in increasing their incomes.
Thakur also assured JICA that the State Government would provide all kinds of policy and resource support for the successful implementation of phase-II of the project.
It was informed that the new phase of the HPCDP would have the JICA loan component of Rs 807.30 crore while the state’s share would be Rs 203.30 crore.