Rs 6,300-crore annual plan size for state

Tribune News Service

Shimla, February 21

The Himachal Pradesh State Planning Board today approved the annual plan size of Rs 6,300 crore for 2018-19 at a meeting chaired by Chief Minister Jai Ram Thakur. This year’s plan marked an increase of 10.51 per cent. Last year, the amount was Rs 5,700 crore.

The Chief Minister said the annual plan had focused on the social service sector, transport and communication, agriculture and allied activities, energy, irrigation and flood control. The social service sector got an outlay of Rs 2,548 crore and transport and communication Rs 1,095 crore.

The third priority has been accorded to agriculture and allied activities, for which an outlay of Rs 844 crore has been proposed. A sum of Rs 682 crore has been proposed for the energy sector, Rs 431 crore for irrigation and flood control and Rs 285 crore for general economic services, while the other sectors will get Rs 415 crore.

The Chief Minister said Rs 653 crore had been proposed under the Rural Infrastructure Development Fund (RIDF) with a loan from NABARD. He said a sum of Rs 368 crore had been proposed for roads and bridges, Rs 130 crore for rural water supply schemes, Rs 110 crore for minor irrigation schemes, Rs 38 crore for micro irrigation and poly houses (agriculture). Earlier, the Chief Minister released a book ‘Strategies for Doubling Farmers Income in Himachal Pradesh’ by HC Sharma. Food and Civil Supplies Minister Kishan Kapoor, Education Minister Suresh Bhardwaj, Urban Development Minister Sarveen Chaudhary, Health and Family Welfare Minister Vipin Parmar, Forest Minister Govind Singh Thakur and Social Justice and Empowerment Minister Dr Rajiv Saizal were also present at the meeting.

Chief Secretary Vineet Chawdhry, Additional Chief Secretary, Finance, Dr Shrikant Baldi and other senior officials were present.