SHIMLA-1 August, 2025
CM reviews special screening of “The Last Drop” by KBC fame Arunoday Sharma
Chief Minister Thakur Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu on Thursday late evening, watched a special screening of the short film “The Last Drop” at his official residence, Oak Over Shimla. The film, featuring Kaun Banega Crorepati (KBC) fame Arunoday Sharma, focuses on the pressing global issue of melting glaciers and climate change. Directed by Dr. Paras Prakash, the 25-minute film will be officially launched on 1 August during The Great Himalayan Water Festival in Shimla.
The Chief Minister lauded the film and extended his best wishes for its success. He emphasized that global warming was one of the most critical challenges of the modern era and collective efforts were essential to combat its far-reaching impacts. He appreciated the creative initiative taken to raise awareness on climate issues, especially among younger generations.
Sh. Sukhu said that the State had already begun experiencing the adverse effects of global warming. To mitigate potential loss of life and property, the government was implementing an Early Warning System (EWS), which would enhance real-time monitoring, forecasting and issuance of timely alerts, enabling early action and reducing the scale of disaster-related damage.
Speaker of the Himachal Pradesh Legislative Assembly, Kuldeep Singh Pathania, Arunoday Sharma’s parents Jagdish Sharma and Mamta Paul along-with members of the film’s production team were also present on the occasion.
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CM congratulates Sanjay Vatsayan on assuming charge of Vice Chief of Indian Navy
Chief Minister Thakur Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu extended his congratulations and best wishes to Vice Admiral Sanjay Vatsayan, a resident of Hiranagar in Hamirpur district, on assuming charge as the 47th Vice Chief of the Indian Navy.
The Chief Minister said that it was a moment of immense pride that the sons of Himachal Pradesh are achieving new milestones in the service of the nation through their talent, dedication and commitment.
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HPSEB Ltd earns historic profit of Rs. 315 crore
For the first time in its history, the Himachal Pradesh State Electricity Board Limited (HPSEBL) has earned a record profit of Rs. 315 crore in the financial year 2024-25. After facing losses for many years, this is the highest profit ever recorded by the Board. It is a testament to the bold steps and visionary decisions taken under the leadership of Chief Minister Thakur Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu which have steered the state towards economic stability. This milestone is not just a number, but a reflection of the commitment of the present state government to its vision of a “Nai Soch, Naya Himachal”.
Until 31 March, 2024, HPSEBL had accumulated losses amounting to Rs. 3,742 crore. However, the present state government, through its reforms, transparent administrative policies and financial discipline helped the Board recover from losses and turn profitable.
From the very first day in office, the Chief Minister prioritized “economic reforms and good governance”, holding several hours of meetings with officials. He gave clear instructions to all public sector undertakings to work with professional efficiency and move towards self-reliance. HPSEBL translated this vision into action by implementing financial discipline, cutting unnecessary expenses and improving revenue which resulted in this remarkable turnaround.
With the improved financial condition of the Board, the state government has also ensured financial benefits for employees. For the financial year 2024-25, an amount of Rs. 368.89 crore has been approved for gratuity, medical reimbursement, revised pension arrears and leave encashment a significant increase from Rs. 87.56 crore in the previous year. Out of this, Rs. 187.86 crore have already been disbursed by 31 July, 2025. This reflects the sensitivity and commitment of the state government to employee welfare.
Sh. Sukhu has congratulated the management, officers and staff of HPSEBL on this historic achievement. He said the success was the result of a clear policy, honest governance and a welfare-oriented approach. The government would continue to introduce reforms in all public undertakings to make the state economically stronger and provide affordable and better services to the public. He expressed confidence that with everyone's cooperation, the Board would become fully self-reliant, benefiting not only the employees and officers but also the people of the state.
The Chief Minister also highlighted the reforms brought in the education department. Due to these efforts, Himachal Pradesh has climbed from 21st to 5th position in the country in terms of quality education, leaving behind 16 other states. This progress too was credited to strong leadership, determination and farsightedness.
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CS launches face authentication in public distribution system
Himachal leads country in Aadhaar generation of children below five years
Chief Secretary Prabodh Saxena chaired a meeting to review Aadhaar progress with all the departmental heads of the state government and the Unique Identification Authority of India (UIDAI), here today. The face authentication in public distribution system was launched by the Chief Secretary in presence of Deputy Director General, UIDAI Dhiraj Sarin and other Secretaries.
Emphasizing the importance of achieving hundred percent Aadhaar saturation across Himachal Pradesh, all the departments including DDT&G, Postal department and School education were directed to activate all Aadhaar enrollment kits at the earliest and ensure optimal utilization of available resources.
It was informed that Himachal Pradesh is leading the country in terms of Aadhaar generation of the children below five years. The national average is 39 percent whereas the State has achieved 56 percent coverage. The State has made significant progress over the last three months and the pendency of mandatory biometric update has decreased from 5.5 lakh to 4.75 lakh. It was also informed that the Department of Digital Technology & Governance in collaboration with Education department has arranged multiple camps in the schools to cover the mandatory biometric updates.
The Chief Secretary directed to cover private schools as well to reduce the pendency of mandatory biometric update, which were to be carried out on attaining the age of 5 and 15 years. He also emphasized on popularization of Aadhaar related services and to carry awareness campaign through school education department to encourage parents and guardians for mandatory biometric update of their children.
He further directed to deploy Aadhaar kits at immunization centers to cover Aadhaar enrolment of 0-5 age group. The Health department, department of Digital Technology & Governance and India Post Payment Bank (IPPB) would facilitate Aadhaar enrollment for children below five years, ensuring their complete coverage.
Commodore (IN) Dhiraj Sareen, DDG, UIDAI Regional Office, Chandigarh highlighted for scaling of Aadhaar authentication in various departments of the state government and also mentioned the latest amendments in Aadhaar SWIK (Social, Welfare, Innovation, Knowledge) rules wherein now private entities such as hotels, hospitals, travel agencies could also use Aadhaar based authentication subject to approval by the concerned department of the State. He highlighted the requirement for digitization of documents used in Aadhaar updation, issued by the state government.
The Chief Secretary also directed all the departments to ensure Aadhaar based authentication of beneficiaries for various services and digitization of documents released by the state government.
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State level workshop organised for NSS 80th round on domestic tourism expenditure survey
Economic and Statistics Deparment, in collaboration with the National Statistical Office (NSO), Field Operations Division, Shimla, organised a State Level Workshop for Field Investigators on the NSS 80th Round at Shimla today. The workshop was inaugurated and presided over by Economic Adviser Dr. Vinod Kumar Rana.
The NSS 80th Round focuses on the Domestic Tourism Expenditure Survey, which would be conducted over a period of one year. The survey aims to collect detailed data on household expenditure related to domestic overnight and same-day trips. This information is crucial for preparing the Tourism Satellite Account (TSA) and contributes to the Travel and Tourism Development Index (TTDI) prepared by the UNWTO through the Ministry of Tourism, Government of India.
Dr. Vinod Kumar Rana emphasized the importance of data quality and timely publication using Computer Assisted Personal Interview (CAPI) tools. He urged field staff to remain diligent and professional in data collection and stressed public cooperation for the success of the survey.
Joint Director Anupam Sharma also addressed the participants and appreciated the efforts of field investigators in delivering reliable statistical inputs for policy planning.
During the session Deputy Director Suresh Verma and Research Officer Rajeev Kumar imparted the training whereas the Special sessions were conducted by Deputy Director Ajay Kumar Kumawat and Senior Statistical Officer V. C. Negi.
Data for the survey would be collected from around 144 rural and 56 urban blocks in the State sample, along with a corresponding Central sample.
The Department has appealed to the public to cooperate with the survey teams and provide accurate and authentic information.