Himachal Pradesh Government

State Government to form a State Nutrition Policy: Chief Minister
Composite testing laboratory at Kandaghat to be equipped with world-class technology

Chief Minister Thakur Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu while chairing a review meeting of the department of Health Safety and Regulation stated that government would formulate a State Nutrition Policy with an objective to ensure availability of balanced and nutritious food for all vulnerable groups, including children, adolescent girls, expectant and lactating mothers.

The Chief Minister said that the composite testing laboratory at Kandaghat would be upgraded with world-class, high-end technology to ensure precise analysis and greater efficiency. To ensure the quality and timely testing of food items, regional laboratories would be established in the first phase at Baddi, Mandi, Kangra and Shimla. In the second phase, similar laboratories would be set up in all districts of the state.

He further said that nutritional surveillance in the state would be strengthened. Food items would be tested and their nutritional content would be profiled and mapped. The department has been directed to carry out regular testing of food provided under schemes such as the Public Distribution System (PDS), Anganwadi services and the Mid-Day Meal Scheme. He said that mobile vans would be used for testing, awareness generation, capacity building and training, so that the department’s outreach and effectiveness can be expanded across all districts.

To make departmental functioning more efficient and time-bound, the Chief Minister directed the use of modern information technology and complete digitization of all processes. He instructed the department to develop a state portal for the digital execution of all activities, including food sample collection and test results. Additionally, a State Nutrition Database would also be created.

The Chief Minister expressed concern that deficiencies in nutritional content and the presence of pesticides in food were contributing to an increase in diseases. He said that the state government was seriously addressing both issues and was working on effective solutions. In this context, he added that the government was promoting natural farming and encouraging farmers by providing benefits under various schemes.

He said that the state government was continuously strengthening the health sector. World-class standards were being adopted in medical education, ICUs were being established in every medical college and hospitals were ensuring a global-standard doctor-patient ratio.

Director DDTG Dr. Nipun Jindal, Special Secretary (Health) Ashwani Sharma, Director of Health Safety and Regulation Jitendra Sanjta and other senior officers were present in the meeting.

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CM directs to issue Himcare Cards, e-KYC for all registered construction workers
Chief Minister Thakur Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu while chairing a review meeting of Himachal Pradesh Building and Other Construction Workers Welfare Board here today directed that all the workers registered under the board should be issued Himcare cards to enable them to avail benefits of the scheme and their e-KYC be completed at the earliest through the Him Parivar Portal.

He also said that financial assistance provided to the children of registered workers for higher education such as PhD, MBBS, engineering, etc. should be given at the same rate as the fee charged by government institutions for those courses. The Chief Minister further directed that children with disabilities of registered workers should also be linked with the Mukhyamantri Sahara Yojana.

He emphasized upon holding awareness camps about the harmful effects of drug abuse under the anti-chitta campaign by the Board. He said that steps should be taken to ensure that workers receive benefits under various welfare schemes, said Sh. Sukhu.

It was informed in the meeting that the Board has spent Rs 20.70 crore on various welfare schemes in the financial year 2023–24, Rs 33.27 crore in 2024–25 and Rs 26.23 crore in 2025-26 so far. During the financial year 2025–26, pensions amounting to Rs 31.06 lakh were provided to 1,606 beneficiaries under the Board’s pension scheme.

Board Chairman Nardev Singh Kanwar said that the Board provides financial assistance of Rs 51,000 for the marriage of a registered worker and Rs 51,000 each for the marriage of up to two children of the worker. He gave detailed information about the assistance being provided under various schemes.

Member Secretary and Chief Executive Officer of the Board, Rajiv Kumar, informed that around Rs 500 crore has been spent so far to provide benefits to workers under various welfare schemes. He said that currently 4,76,052 workers are registered with the Board.

Chief Minister’s Secretary Rakesh Kanwar, Secretaries Priyanka Basu Ingty and Ashish Singhmar, Director DDTG Dr. Nipun Jindal, Labour Commissioner Virender Sharma and other senior officers were present in the meeting.

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CM assures to raise the concern of apple orchardists with Union Government
Chief Minister Thakur Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu while chairing a meeting with representatives of progressive orchardists of the State attended their concern over reduction of import duty on apples imported from New Zealand which have adversely affected the interests of local orchardists.

He assured them that the issue would be raised with the Central Government to find a way out to address their concerns. "I will meet the Union Finance and the Commerce Minister and urge them to take necessary measures to protect the interests of the orchardists of the state" he said, adding that apple production was a major pillar of the state’s economy and its protection and promotion was a top priority of the state government.

Other important issues were also discussed in the meeting.

Horticulture Minister Jagat Singh Negi, Principal Advisor to the Chief Minister Ram Subhag Singh, Secretary C. Palrasu, Director of Horticulture Vinay Singh, State Committee President of Himachal Apple Growers Association Sanjay Chauhan, State Secretary of Himachal Kisan Sabha Rakesh Singha, President of Stone Fruit Growers Association Deepak Singha, Vice President of Progressive Growers Association Ashutosh Chauhan and other progressive orchardists were present in the meeting.

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CM directs linking data of farmers practicing natural farming with Him Parivar Portal
CM to interact with farmers engaged in natural farming at a conference in Hamirpur

Chief Minister Thakur Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu directed the Agriculture Department to link detailed data of farmers, practicing natural farming, with the Him Parivar Portal by 20 January 2026 so that a block-level database of such farmers could be prepared and mapped accordingly. He was presiding over the meeting of Agriculture Department here today.

The Chief Minister said that youth would be encouraged to adopt natural farming to strengthen the rural economy. He said that by promoting this method of farming across the state would boost and strengthen the economy of the farmers. He said that the state government was working to bring revolutionary changes in the natural farming-based system, adding that he will interact with farmers associated with natural farming at a conference to be held this month in Hamirpur.

Sh. Sukhu reviewed various issues of the farmers related to wheat, maize and raw turmeric produced through natural farming. He said that wheat flour produced through natural farming was being marketed under the brand ‘Him Chakki Atta’, maize flour as ‘Him Bhog Makki Atta’ and raw turmeric as ‘Him Haldi’. He directed that expiry date and nutritional present in these products should be clearly displayed on the flour packets and also instructed for the formation of a special unit to assess nutritional content.

The Chief Minister said that 606.8 metric tonnes of naturally grown maize have been procured and Rs. 2.31 crore has been transferred directly to bank accounts of the farmer's. Similarly, 2,123 quintals of naturally grown wheat have been procured at the Minimum Support Price, and 1.32 lakh has been transferred to farmers through Direct Benefit Transfer (DBT).

Encouraging results were being seen by providing a support price of Rs. 90 per kg for naturally grown raw turmeric, he said adding that procurement of around 2,422 quintals of turmeric from 1,629 farmers was estimated this year. He added that the Agriculture Department is producing various crops using natural farming methods on its 25 farms across the state.

The Chief Minister emphasized ensuring better marketing of natural farming products as well.

Agriculture Minister Prof. Chander Kumar gave valuable suggestions during the meeting.

Principal Advisor (Innovation, Digital Technology and Governance) Gokul Butail, Principal Advisor to the Chief Minister Ram Subhag Singh, Advocate General Anup Rattan, Secretary to the Chief Minister Rakesh Kanwar, Secretaries C. Palrasu and Ashish Singhmar, Director DDTG Dr. Nipun Jindal, Director Agriculture Ravinder Singh Jasrotia, Director Horticulture Vinay Singh and other senior officers were present in the meeting.

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Anti-Chitta Gram Sabhas to be held in Gram Panchayats on 21 and 22 January : CM
Anti-Chitta Awareness sports tournaments to be organized across state

Chief Minister Thakur Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu while presiding over a meeting of senior officers held here last evening said that Anti-Chitta Gram Sabhas would be organised in all Gram Panchayats of the state on 21 and 22 January 2026. He said these sabhas would review information related to chitta and focus on important issues, including the rehabilitation of local youth addicted to chitta. Officers from various departments would also attend these Gram Sabhas as observers. Each Panchayat would also carry out a detailed mapping of chitta-related activities during the meetings.

The Chief Minister said that statewide awareness campaigns were already underway to educate people about the harmful effects of chitta and other psychotropic drugs.

As part of this effort, Anti-Chitta Awareness Sports Tournaments would also be organised across the state on the lines of the Premier League. He said that these tournaments would feature kabaddi, cricket and volleyball matches and would be held at the block, district and state levels. Winning teams would receive cash prizes from the Chief Minister.

He further said that the government was following a multi-pronged strategy to break the chain of chitta trafficking and its supply. The properties owned by chitta smugglers have been identified and would be demolished.

The Chief Minister also directed the Education Department to include a chapter on the harmful effects of chitta in school textbooks to raise awareness among students. He directed to include Gram Panchayat Pradhans and Panchayat Samiti members as special invitees in Panchayat-level drug de-addiction committees. In addition, Farmer Producer Organizations (FPOs) and women’s self-help groups (Mahila Mandals) would be actively involved in the campaign against chitta.

Rural Development and Panchayati Raj Minister Anirudh Singh, Principal Advisor to the Chief Minister Ram Subhag Singh, Chief Secretary Sanjay Gupta, Additional Chief Secretary K.K. Pant, Secretary to the Chief Minister Rakesh Kanwar, Secretary C. Palrasu, Advocate General Anup Rattan, Director Rural Development Raghav Sharma and other senior officers were also present in the meeting.

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CM calls for scientific studies on water evaporation and melting of glaciers
Reviews ongoing construction projects in the energy sector

Chief Minister Thakur Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu today chaired a review meeting of various departments and undertakings related to the energy sector here.

The Chief Minister directed to conduct a thorough study on water evaporation from various dams and reservoirs during the summer season. He said that the increasing level of haze in different cities of the State was a matter of concern and emphasized that a scientific assessment on this issue was the need of the hour. He further stated that an in-depth study should be conducted to examine whether there was any co-relation between water evaporation from reservoirs and the rising incidents of cloudbursts.

Sh. Sukhu also instructed officials to analyze the rate of glacier melting in the state and its implications for flood management. He noted that accelerated melting of glaciers adversely impacts the ecological system and disrupts the natural environmental balance.

The Chief Minister reviewed various ongoing construction projects in the energy sector and issued necessary directions to the officers.

He held detailed discussions on smart meters and directed officials to carry out feeder billing mapping. The Chief Minister informed that the completion of construction work on 13 hydroelectric projects has enhanced the State’s power generation capacity by 1,229 megawatts.

On the occasion, Principal Advisor to the Chief Minister Ram Subhag Singh, Advocate General Anup Rattan, Secretary to the Chief Minister Rakesh Kanwar and senior officers were present.

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