Excelsior Correspondent
NEW DELHI, Nov 3 : Union Minister of State (Independent Charge) of the Ministry of Development of North Eastern Region (DoNER), MoS PMO, Personnel, Public Grievances & Pensions, Atomic Energy and Space, Dr Jitendra Singh said here today that the National Institute for High Altitude Medicinal Plants ,coming up at Bhaderwah, will open new livelihood options, not only for the surrounding areas but for the entire region and, in the times to come, it may become a preferred destination for young scholars, researchers and Start-Ups from all over India, who would come here looking forward to explore the potentials of Himalayas.
Dr Jitendra Singh, who along with AYUSH Minister Shripadyesso Naik chaired a high level meeting of the officials of Union AYUSH Ministry and senior officers from the Union Territories of Jammu and Kashmir & Ladakh, said that in the new arrangement that has come into being after October 31, there might be ease in pushing forward several of the Centrally Sponsored Projects, which were earlier subject to undue delays.
About the National Institute for High-altitude Medicinal Plants at Bhaderwah, which was sanctioned by the Modi Government early this year, the concerned officers informed that there had been a delay on the part of the then State Government in the land acquisition etc, but now the decks have been cleared and the execution of work will be pushed forward at a fast pace.
Dr Jitendra Singh apprised at the meeting that the importance of this Institute can be realized from the fact that it could have been sanctioned at any Himalayan region or a hill State like, for example Himachal Pradesh or Uttarakhand or North Eastern States, but it was at our request that Prime Minister Narendra Modi gave the approval to set it up in the hilly terrains of Bhaderwah. This, he said, will not only open new avenues of livelihood but also, in the course of time, emerge as one of the brightest spots in the new Union Territory of Jammu & Kashmir.
At a presentation made during the meeting, it was stated that the National Institute for High-altitude Medicinal Plants at Bhaderwah will promote skill and capacity-building and will also offer provisions for sustainable cultivation, technology-upgradation, trainingm as well as research on High-altitude Medicinal and Aromatic Plants. In addition, it will provide support to farmers and entrepreneurs through activities like post-harvest management.
At the meeting, the two Ministries were given a brief review about the status of various AYUSH services in Jammu and Kashmir & Ladakh, the shifting of Jammu Ayurvedic College to its new location at Akhnoor, the progress of Government Unani College at Ganderbal, construction of integrated Ayush Hospitals in Kishtwar, Billawar,Kupwara and Kulgam, and the upcoming Health and Wellness Centres.
As for Ladakh, the Modi Government has proposed a National Institute of Sowa Rigpa, which should work in coordination with Central Institute of Buddhist Studies, Sarnath and Central Institute of Higher studies at Ladakh.
Vaidya Rajesh Katoch, Secretary Ministry of Ayush, Roshan Jaggi, Secretary, Ministry of Ayush, Dr Tanuja Nesari, CEO National Medicinal Plant Board, T Ravi Kumar, CEO Medicinal Plant Board, J&K, Dr Mohan Singh, Director ISM J&K and Dr Phuntsog Angchuk, Director Health Ladakh attended the meeting among others.
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