Workshop trains women to craft pine-needle products

About 35 women from Shimla, Solan, Lahaul and Spiti, and Chamba districts were trained in preparing handicraft products using pine tree needles during a six-day capacity-building workshop organised by the EIACP–PC Hub of the Himachal Pradesh Council for Science, Technology and Environment (HIMCOSTE), which concluded here on Sunday.

Priyanka Sharma, scientific officer and coordinator, EIACP–PC Hub, HIMCOSTE, Shimla, said the objective of the workshop was to build the capacity of women to generate income by preparing handicraft products from pine needles. “Another aim was to promote proper disposal of pine needles lying on forest floors and enhance community participation in environmental conservation and forest fire control,” Sharma said. She urged participants to create various products through this training, as it could become a good source of income.