Shimla (Himachal Pradesh) [India], June 6 (ANI): Himachal Pradesh Cabinet, in its meeting held in Shimla on Saturday under the chairmanship of Chief Minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu, approved the reconsideration of claims for compassionate appointments that were earlier rejected by various departments for various reasons.

As a one-time measure, the most genuine rejected cases will be re-examined for consideration along with various needed relaxations.

The Cabinet approved the Policy for Regularisation of Certain Encroachments on Government Land, 2026, aimed at addressing the humanitarian concerns of landless families and marginal farmers who are in possession of government land for residential, agricultural and horticultural purposes.

The policy has been framed in compliance with the directions of the Supreme Court of India. The policy has been sent to the Government of India for approval.

It decided to introduce the Agriculture Loan Interest Subvention Scheme to those farmers whose land is up for auction. The State Government will bear 50 per cent of the interest liability on eligible agricultural loans upto Rs. 3 lakh, benefiting 6356 farmers across the State.

The Cabinet gave its approval to create and fill 400 posts of Work Inspector under the Directorate of Recruitment.

It also approved filling up of 300 posts of Medical Officers and 250 posts of class-IV/Multi Task Workers in the Department of Health and Family Welfare.

It also put its seal on recruiting 200 staff nurses in the Department of Health and Family Welfare. It also decided to fill up 162 posts in the Health and Family Welfare Department, which include 76 Operation Theatre Assistants, 36 Radiographers, and 50 Lab. Technicians Grade-II.

It decided to create and fill up 75 posts of Assistant Professors of various departments in different medical colleges across the State.

It gave its consent to fill up two posts of Assistant Professor and two posts of Senior Resident in the department of Cardiology at Shri Lal Bahadur Shastri Government Medical College, Nerchowk, district Mandi.

It decided to grant a one-time relaxation to six designated Professors of Dr. Radhakrishnan Government Medical College, Hamirpur, who were almost six to 20 days short for becoming eligible for the designation. It approved the creation and filling up of 12 posts of various categories at Civil Hospital Dehra and three posts of different categories in the office of the Block Medical Officer, Dehra, in Kangra district.

It decided to fill up 17 posts of Assistant Professors in various departments in Himachal Pradesh University, Shimla. It also decided to grant full salary to employees proceeding on study leave. Employees who had previously availed study leave will likewise be paid the balance amount of salary due to them.

It further approved the conversion of part-time workers who have completed seven years of continuous service as of March 31, 2026, into daily wagers.

It also approved the grant of 15 days of paternity leave to Job Trainees. It also approved the creation and filling up of three posts of different categories at the College of Horticulture and Forestry, Neri, in Hamirpur district.

The Cabinet gave its nod to create two posts of Junior Office Assistant (IT) in the office of the Divisional Commissioner, Mandi. It further decided to fill up one post of Junior Office Assistant (IT) and one post of Multi-Task Worker reserved for persons with disabilities in the Home Guards and Civil Defence Department.

The Cabinet also approved the creation of a new Public Works Department Sub-Division at Chadhiar in Kangra district through the reorganisation of the existing Baijnath and Bir Sub-Divisions.

It also decided to fill up three posts of Himachal Pradesh Administrative Services.

The Cabinet approved the withdrawal of advertisements for 80 post codes issued by the erstwhile Himachal Pradesh Staff Selection Commission, Hamirpur, and decided to refund the examination fee amounting to Rs 4.27 crore to the concerned candidates.

It approved the launch of Phase IV of the Rajiv Gandhi Swarojgar Start-Up Yojana. Under the scheme, eligible beneficiaries will be provided a 50 per cent subsidy for the purchase of e-buses and a 30 per cent subsidy for diesel buses to operate on identified bus routes, with the objective of promoting self-employment and strengthening public transport services.

The Cabinet approved amendments to the Himachal Pradesh NDPS Rules, 1989, to regulate the cultivation, processing, manufacturing, warehousing and transportation of cannabis for medical and scientific purposes.

It approved a special relief package for 15 fire-affected families in the Jubbal, Kotkhai and Rohru areas of Shimla district. Under the package, financial assistance of Rs 7 lakh per family will be provided to those whose houses were fully destroyed in fire incidents. A total assistance of Rs 84.70 lakh will be disbursed to the affected families.

It was further decided to constitute a Cabinet Sub-Committee to be presided over by Deputy Chief Minister Mukesh Agnihotri to look into centralising and streamlining the recruitment process of Multi Task Workers to be appointed in various departments.

The Cabinet approved a reduction in the compounding fee for tractors transporting minerals for domestic use, bringing it down from Rs 4,500 to Rs 500. The decision will provide major relief to tractor operators by protecting them from undue harassment and eliminating the burden of excessive penalties.

It approved the Grazing Policy 2026 under which the forest department and the animal husbandry department will join hands to develop a portal to facilitate the graziers and grant real-time permits to strengthen the rural economy.

The Cabinet decided to enhance the health insurance coverage under the HIMCARE Scheme by shifting it to the insurance mode. Under the revised arrangement, eligible beneficiaries will receive health insurance cover of Rs 7 lakh and Rs 10 lakh, as against the existing coverage of Rs 5 lakh.

It also approved the State Innovation Policy for Technical Education Institutions with the objective of establishing Himachal Pradesh as an emerging hub of innovation, entrepreneurship and start-ups. To operationalise the policy, a provision of Rs 2 crore has been earmarked for the period from 2026 to 2028.

It also approved the grant of a 40-year lease in favour of the Himachal Pradesh Power Transmission Corporation Limited for the construction of a 132/33 KV Sub-Station at Patola and a 220 KV Switching Sub-Station at Kangen in Kangra district. It decided to upgrade Civil Hospital Sarkaghat in Mandi district from 100 beds to 150 beds, along with the creation and filling up of requisite posts.

It also decided to upgrade Primary Health Centre Kalol in Bilaspur district as a Community Health Centre, along with the creation and filling up of requisite posts.

It accorded its approval for the upgradation of Civil Hospital Baddi into a 100-bedded hospital and the opening of Primary Health Centre Manpura in Solan district alongwith creation and filling up of requisite posts.

The Cabinet approved the opening of a Primary Health Sub-Centre at Manjheli in Hamirpur district, along with the creation and filling up of the requisite posts.

It approved the upgradation of the State-level Shoolini Mela in Solan district to National-level status. It also decided to accord State-level status to Maa Shiv Shakti Jatar Mela, Chhatrari in Chamba district, and Shivratri Mela Kathgarh in Indora of Kangra district.

Further, the Cabinet approved the upgradation of Mela Nerati Rait in Kangra district, Baridhar Mela Saryanj in Arki tehsil of Solan district, Chhinj Mela Garnota in Chamba district and Nahvidhar Mela in Karsog tehsil of Mandi district to District-level fairs.

The Cabinet also approved the upgradation of Thakur Ramlal Girls' Sports Hostel, Jubbal in Shimla district into Thakur Ramlal Government Girls School of Sports, Jubbal, along with the creation and filling up of 23 posts of various categories.

It further approved the revised Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) for the Mukhya Mantri Sahara Yojana to ensure its smooth transition and effective implementation.

A presentation on CBSE schools was also made before the Cabinet by the Secretary (Education). (ANI)