Chief Minister inaugurated Shri Anna Mahotsav 2023 at Hathibarkala

• 15 May 2023

Why in News?

On 13 May 2023, Uttarakhand Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami inaugurated Shri Anna Mahotsav 2023 at Survey Stadium, Hathibarkala in Dehradun district.

Key Points:

• Thousands of farmers from all over the state are participating in the four-day Shree Anna Mahotsav.
• On this occasion, the Chief Minister inspected various stalls based on Millets and released the book 'Swad Ke Saath Swasthya' based on nutritious crops of Agriculture Department, Uttarakhand.
• This event will prove to be a milestone in promoting 'Shri Anna'. Such events will not only encourage the cultivation of millets but also provide necessary information related to millets to the farmers.
• It is worth mentioning that the year 2023 is being celebrated as 'Millets Year' in the country and on the proposal of India, the 'United Nations' has declared 2023 as the International Year of Millets.
• The Uttarakhand state government is working to encourage the cultivation of millet in the hilly regions of the state through government schemes to encourage farmers and provide employment.
• Coarse grains like Mandwa, Jhingora, Chaulai are being procured from the farmers of the hilly districts of the state at minimum support price, along with this, online payment is also being made to the farmers. This is not only increasing the income of farmers but also encouraging farmers to produce millet products.
• An amount of about Rs 73 crore has been given to the State Millet Mission by the government to encourage millet crops and include them in the food of common people.
• Along with organic agriculture, the implementation of the National Natural Agriculture Mission scheme is being started in 11 districts of the state from this year. For this, approval has also been given by the Government of India to run an agricultural mission program worth about 796 lakhs on 6400 hectares of land.
• Uttarakhand has got the first prize for two consecutive years for doing good work in the state in the field of organic farming.