Shimla, Jul 15 (IANS): In order to ensure the real-time monitoring of apple boxes and vehicles' movement, Himachal Pradesh Urban Development Minister Suresh Bhardwaj on Thursday launched a digital initiative -- Him SABE (surveillance of apple belt economy) in Fagu, some 20 km from Shimla.

The minister termed the initiative as an effort to go paperless.

He said, "There are many interstate as well as intrastate barriers. There were chances of mistakes or discrepancies while making entries on registers. The new system is error proof, time efficient and transparent."

While making data entry, the registration number of the vehicle will be scanned. This will help in curbing the fraud cases.

Bhardwaj, during a review meeting of apple season preparedness last month, had asked officials to use technology for making the system more efficient.

He said the apple economy is not limited to Shimla district but many other districts are linked to it. Five districts are into apple cultivation and people from other districts depend on the apple economy for livelihood, he added.

The online system will do away with the issues of delay in collating data from different barriers like Balag, Fagu, etc. There had been reports of discrepancies in reports across different departments, including APMC, and the Horticulture Department.

The minister added that the new system will be convenient to the public and result in smooth vehicular movement.

The minister hailed Shimla district administration as well as the Sub-divisional Magistrate of Theog for this initiative.

The state is expecting to produce four crore boxes of apples this season, almost 50 lakh crates more than the previous year.

Each box contains 20 kg of apples. The apple harvesting in the state begins in July end and will continue till October.

Shimla district alone accounts for 80 per cent of the state's total production of apples.