DW BUREAU With a view to facilitating production and trade of quality honey in the State, the Haryana Government has proposed various infrastructure development projects and training programmes for beekeepers to the tune of Rs. 32.28 crore under the 'Atmanirbhar Bharat Abhiyan' economic package. This includes setting up of a quality control test laboratory at Integrated Beekeeping Development Centre (IBDC), Ramnagar, district Kurukshetra, at a cost of Rs 20 crore. Besides, Rs 1.40 crore would be earmarked for establishing collection, marketing and storage centres, post-harvest, and value addition at IBDC. A sum of Rs. 10.88 crore is proposed to be spent on other components such as beehives, bee-colonies, bee-breeders, training programmes and other state agricultural universities (SAU) projects. While stating this here today, Additional Chief Secretary, Agriculture and Farmers' Welfare Department, Sanjeev Kaushal, said that the setting up of the laboratory, which would be got accredited, would help beekeepers and honey producers produce quality honey for domestic consumption, as well as exports. Besides Haryana, the laboratory would also cater to all northern states which have a major share in honey production, including Punjab, Himachal Pradesh, Jammu and Kashmir, Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan and Uttarakhand. He said that the IBDC already has all other infrastructure facilities. (editor@dailyworld.in)