category Regional, shimla, , tags Regional, shimla, , DW BUREAU shimla The Himachal Pradesh government on Monday signed a memorandum of understanding with HLC Green Energy to make it the First Green State by 2025, Chief Minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu said. The project will bring in an investment of more than Rs 4,000 crore, besides generating direct and indirect employment opportunities for about 2,500 persons. It would also help in the creation of skilled labour, a statement issued here said. The MoU was signed by Director Industries Rakesh Kumar Prajapati and HLC Green Energy LLC MD Sanjay Sharma in the presence of Industries Minister Harshwardhan Chauhan. The chief minister said green hydrogen has the potential to reduce greenhouse gas emissions significantly, cut fertiliser prices and contribute to the nation s economy through import substitution. Himachal Pradesh was already famous for green hydel energy and will now encourage new clean energy projects, such as ethanol, green hydrogen, green ammonia, solar and others, and make the state an ideal for becoming the clean energy hub of the country, he added. The state has a clear-cut advantage on account of abundant green hydel energy and abundance of water resources and assured full cooperation and support from the state government to the company in setting up the project, Sukhu said. The industries minister said that the company intends to produce 0.3 million metric tonnes (MMT) of green hydrogen and 1.5 million metric tons (MMT) of green ammonia per year. The land requirement for this project is around 20-25 acres and is likely to be set up in Una and Kangra due to water and logistics suitability. urges people to wear face masks Hamirpur The Hamirpur district administration on Monday issued an advisory for people to wear face masks and observe physical distancing norms amid an increase in COVID-19 cases in Himachal Pradesh. Acting Deputy Commissioner Jitendra Sanjta urged residents of the district to take precautions, including getting the precaution dose of the COVID-19 vaccine. In his advisory, he also asked people to get themselves tested for Covid if they show symptoms. Monitoring of H3N2 influenza cases is necessary along with COVID-19, he said, and advised people to go for medical consultation if they show symptoms. In the advisory, people have been advised to wear face masks in crowded places and at all health care institutions. They have also been advised to follow physical distancing norms. Active COVID-19 cases in Himachal Pradesh have risen from 133 to 415 in the past two weeks. As on Sunday, Shimla district had the highest number of active cases at 98, followed by Mandi at 95, Kangra at 64, Solan at 61 and Hamirpur at 32, Health department officials said. PTI (editor dailyworld.in)