Kangra admn prepares plan to tackle drought-like conditions

Our Correspondent

Nurpur, March 16

The district administration has made an emergency response plan for areas that are likely to face water scarcity during the summer and also to tackle drought-like conditions.

Traffic jam near Atal Tunnel post snowfall

• As many as 300 vehicles were struck near Atal Tunnel on the Manali-Leh highway after fresh snowfall in the region on Thursday
• It suddenly started snowing and the road from the Solang valley up to Atal Tunnel became slippery, causing a long traffic jam in the area
• Sensing trouble for tourists, the Lahaul-Spiti and Kullu police acted jointly and evacuated nearly 300 stranded vehicles safely

DC Nipun Jindal says officials of different government departments have been directed to identify areas in the district that are likely to face water scarcity. He adds that officials of the Agriculture and Horticulture departments have also been directed to coordinate with ‘specified’ insurance companies to ensure that the benefits of the Prime Minister Crop Insurance Scheme (PMCIS) reach farmers and fruit growers.

Jindal exhorts farmers and fruit growers to get their crops insured by paying a nominal premium. He says that they can submit their crop insurance applications on the PMCIS portal until July 15. “Under the scheme, there is a provision of an insurance cover on the payment of a premium of Rs 1,200 per kanal of maize and paddy crops for the Kharif season. Farmers can also get an insurance cover for cash crops like tomatoes and potatoes,” he adds.

He says under the PMCIS, all risks from the time of sowing to harvesting crops were covered. He has directed Forest Department officials to prepare an action plan for the prevention of wildfires and monitoring such incidents. He has advised them to coordinate with all stakeholders such as the District Disaster Management Authority, Kangra, Fire Department and the local community to control forest fires.

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