Flower market to come up in Una

Una, August 28

Agriculture Minister Virender Kanwar today said that a flower market would be opened in Una. It will be the second such market in the state after Parwanoo. He was speaking at a ‘Kisan Sammelan’ organised in Takka village of Kutlehar Assembly segment.

Kanwar said the farmers of Una district cultivate flowers on a large scale, but face difficulties in marketing the produce. He said a new vegetable and fruit market is being constructed in Rampur village near Una city and tenders amounting to Rs 2.5 crore have been awarded for the works. He said that additional land is being procured adjacent to the existing plot of the vegetable market for its expansion.

Kanwar, who also holds the portfolio of the Animal Husbandry Minister, said a buffalo-breeding centre to produce ‘Murrah’ breed is coming up in Dangehra village. A veterinary zonal hospital is in the final stage of completion at Barnoh village and a centre of excellence in dairy farming has been sanctioned in Basal village. He added that a team of experts from Denmark would be arriving in Una next month to provide technical knowhow on the dairy project.

The minister said the Rs 1,010-crore second phase of the JICA-assisted crop diversification project has been initiated. It will be implemented in all districts of the state.

He informed that the state government has promoted the plantation of asafoetida in Kullu and Mandi districts besides saffron in Lahaul and Spiti.

In Una, Hamirpur and Bilaspur districts, cinnamon cultivation has been promoted to boost farm income, said Kanwar, adding that a MoU would soon be signed with IHBT Palampur for providing 40,000 saplings of cinnamon every year to the department for distribution to the farmers.

Agriculture Department officers spoke about the new techniques and interventions in agricultural practices.