Himachal Horticulture

Project Components

Component A: Horticulture Production and Diversification- The objective of this component is to enhance horticultural competitiveness at the farm level by supporting access to knowledge, technology and finance in order to increase long term productivity and farm incomes in an environment marked by changing market patterns and increased climate variability.

Horticulture in HP has been responsible for many of the positive outcomes in employment, wages, and in turn, poverty reduction. Employment in horticulture as a percentage of all agricultural employment in HP increased from 0.9 percent to 28 percent between 1983 and 2009-10. Crop diversification has made a significant impact on income and employment among small and marginal farmers.

Component B: Value Addition and Agri-enterprise Development – The objective of this component to improve value realization at the farm level, promote investments in agribusiness, fostering backward and forward linkages in the value chains for horticulture products, support supply chain infrastructure that prevents wastage and value erosion; and enable secondary and tertiary processing that create higher value for the produce.

Component C: Market Development– The objective of this component is to provide an improved platform for market-related information and intelligence, expand market access through alternative marketing channels, enhance transparency in the price discovery process, and improve market infrastructure.

Component D: Project Management, Monitoring and Learning– This component will ensure the effective implementation of the project activities and monitor and evaluate project implementation progress, outputs and outcomes, building on implementation experience. This component will support: (i) establishment and operations of Project Coordination Unit (PCU), which will oversee and coordinate activities of the implementing agencies of the project; (ii) establishment and operations of Project Implementation Units in the respective implementing agencies; and (iii) setting up of a monitoring and evaluation (M&E) system for the project, including a project management information system and contracting an external M&E agency to monitor project activities and impact.