In a significant decision to boost herbal and medicinal plants cultivation in the country, the Yogi Adityanath-led Uttar Pradesh government has decided to develop 800-km network roads in the state as a ‘Herbal belt’ by planting medicinal and herbal trees along both sides of the road.
According to the reports, Uttar Pradesh Deputy CM Keshav Prasad Maurya, who is also the PWD minister in the state, said the state government will plant trees like Peepal, Neem, Sahjan along with other herb varieties like Brahmi, Ashwagandha and Jatrofa to promote herbal and medicinal plant cultivation.
The Deputy Chief Minister added that planting of samplings will provide raw material for the medicines and will also help in curbing the erosion of land. He also stressed that this scheme will help both the development and beautification of the area and bring medicinal benefits along with promoting biodiversity.
The mission to develop medicinal and herbal plant cultivation from Uttar Pradesh comes at the backdrop of the Modi government announcement to develop and promote herbal cultivation.
The plants will be cultivated along 800-kilometre roads of national and state highways passing through the state and a herbal garden will be also developed along with them, which will keep the air free from pollution, bacteria and avoid diseases. The PWD Department will also make arrangement for rainwater recharging system on these herbal roads, the minister added.
Promotion for Herbal cultivation by Modi government
In the recent address to the nation by Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman announcing the third tranche of Modi government’s “Atmanirbhar Bharat Abhiyan” package, she had said that the Modi government will commit to spending Rs 4,000 crore to promote Herbal cultivation in the country.
The Modi government’s mission aims to cover 10 lakh hectare under herbal cultivation in the next two years.
The Finance Minister had announced an economic package worth Rs 20 lakh crores to restart the economy following the coronavirus lockdown.
Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman had announced that support package to promote herbal cultivation will generate income of Rs 5,000 crore for local farmers engaged in this cultivation.
She had said the ‘National Medicinal Plant Board’ will undertake 800 hectares of areas in the corridors of river Ganga for growing of herbal and medical plants.
