In a move that would give impetus to cultivation of horticultural crops in the state Haryana chief minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda on Tuesday said a food processing unit at a cost of Rs 67 crore is being set up at Dabwali in Sirsa district and a cold chain at a cost of Rs 8 crore will come up shortly in Rohtak.
The state?s horticulture budget had been increased to Rs 200 crore. The chief minister was redressing the grievances of people in Rohtak.
He said the foundation stone of the food-processing unit at Dabwali would be laid in the month of February that would prove highly beneficial to the small and marginal farmers of the state. He said fruit and vegetables of the farmers would be procured to prepare different types of juices. He said this whole process would ensure no distress sale of the produce of farmers and they would also be able to get remunerative prices for their produce.
He said the building for the Cold Chain had been constructed and it would shortly be equipped with latest machinery. He said shelf life of Kinnow, Malta and tomato could substantially be raised in this cold chain. Kinnow that perished within a period of two to three days in normal temperature could be preserved fresh for a month in the cold chain.
Farmers could sell their produce in any part of the country with the use of cold chain and the same could also be exported to other countries.
The Cold Chain would prove a milestone in the development of horticulture activities in the state. At present, Kinnow was being cultivated over an area of 5,000 hectare in the state, he added.
He said to store irrigation water, as many as 200 tanks had been constructed so far. In case of non-availability of water in the canals, the water in the tanks could be used for irrigation.