Mumbai, July 30 (IANS) Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis on Wednesday directed the water resources department to complete the stalled projects and provide permanent irrigation to agriculture, bringing economic prosperity to the lives of farmers.
He also asked the department to put in place a new working system to improve the living standards of the citizens by improving the quality of all civic facilities in the rehabilitated villages.
CM Fadnavis, who reviewed the land acquisition of ongoing irrigation projects, said the government is implementing various schemes and initiatives to improve the living standards of farmers. Work on irrigation projects is underway to provide water for irrigation to agriculture and tender process has been issued after 18 years for the completion of some projects.
CM Fadnavis said the Kalu River Project in Thane district is important for the water supply plans of the metropolis. The work of this project should be completed at the earliest.
After the completion of the project, a sustainable source of drinking water will be available for the metropolis. The concerned District Collectors should submit proposals for alternative lands for the forests going into this project. After surveying the damage to trees, afforestation should be done in the concerned district in return, he added.
“To permanently solve the problem of internal roads in the rehabilitated villages, these roads in the villages should be made of cement concrete. There should be closed drains to carry sewage. In this way, there will be no shortage of water in the rehabilitated villages in the future and for that the source of water should be found and the plan should be completed,” said the Chief Minister.
CM Fadnavis said that the District Collectors should complete the work replacing to the irrigation projects on priority in the districts where land acquisition is underway. The land acquisition process should be expedited and land should be made available for the projects immediately.
“After the project is completed, the irrigation capacity of the district will increase and sustainable irrigation will be available for agriculture. This will definitely help in improving the standard of living of the farmers,” he added. He also instructed that land acquisition for the next phase of the Jigaon project should be completed immediately.
According to the government release, currently, work on 57 irrigation projects is underway in the state under the Water Resources Department. A total of 1,06,513 hectares of land will be required for these projects. Out of which, land acquisition of 27,755 hectares is yet to be completed. Also, a total of 210 gaothans are being rehabilitated. So far, 116 gaothans have been rehabilitated and the rehabilitation process of 94 gaothans is underway. After the completion of these projects, irrigation capacity will be created on 6,68,267 hectares in the state while 78.90 TMC of water storage will be available.
–IANS
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