Mumbai:
The Maharashtra cabinet on Wednesday approved a proposal to allocate 50 acres of land in the coastal Sindhudurg district for setting up the National Institute of Medicinal Plants (NIMP).
The land, located in Aadali village of Dodamarg taluka, will be handed over to the Union AYUSH ministry.
The decision was taken at the weekly cabinet meeting chaired by Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray, an official release said.
The institute will generate employment for locals and benefit the state, it added.
NIMP would be a ''one-stop center'' for all matters related to medicinal plants and will work in coordination with the state and central government.
In other decisions, the state cabinet decided to increase the travelling allowance of gram sevaks and village development officers from Rs 1,100 to Rs 1,500 and approved a revised plan to construct a bridge over the railway crossing at Diva in Thane district.