Badal for deliberations with local farmers before finalization of Irrigation schemes in Kandi Area

Chandigarh, September 5, 2012: Punjab Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal today reviewed the progress of various irrigation projects in the Kandi area especially the kandi canal stage-II and asked the Principal Secretary Irrigation to lead a team of engineers, officers of soil conservation and agriculture department to interact with the local farmers for incorporating their inputs before chalking out a comprehensive time bound action program to ensure irrigation facilities in the region.

Presiding over a meeting with the senior officers of the Irrigation department here at CMO this morning, Badal asked the Principal Secretary Irrigation to submit the detailed report with his recommendations in this regard to him within a week so that the entire irrigation projects proposed to be set up in Kandi Area could be taken up in a holistic manner. 

He emphasised the need to take into confidence the farmers of the area prior to the finalisation of the various irrigation schemes in kandi area so that the local residents especially the farmers could be duly benefited.  

The chief minister was apprised by the Chief Engineer Kandi Canal that project of rehabilitation of water courses of kandi canal stage-I having a length of 450 Kms amounting to Rs.43.84 crore has been prepared out of which Rs.10.50 crore were to be provided under ACA and balance Rs.33.34 crore by NABARD.

Regarding the main hindrance in completing the kandi canal-II project and construction of low dams owing to delay in forest clearances, Badal asked the Principal Secretary Irrigation to amicably settle the issue with the forest department to ensure the timely completion of these project. 

Badal was of the firm view that all the irrigation projects to be executed in the Kandi area should be developed and implemented keeping in view the needs of the local residents particular the farmers who were facing acute problems due to scant irrigation facilities in this rain deficit belt. 

The Chief Engineer Kandi Canal also informed the Chief Minister that out of 29 low dams in the kandi area, 12 have been completed and 9 were proposed to be taken up in a phased manner and remaining 8 dams would be taken up in the later stage after the completion of 9 dams.  He said the detailed project proposal amount to Rs.28.38 crore had already been submitted to GoI under Dam Rehabilitation and Improvement Project for which 100% loan was available from World Band.  He also mentioned Rs.31 crore project of irrigation distributary system by providing underground pipe lines of 5 dams namely; Dholbaha, Damsal, Janauri, Maili and Chohal in district Hoshiarpur was being funded by NABARD and would be taken up in 2012. 

It was also informed in the meeting that 68 deep tubewells had already been installed in various parts of the kandi area but could not be made operational due to non-energization by the Punjab State Power Corporation Ltd. (PSPCL). 

Badal asked the CMD PSPCL to immediately release power connections for the energisation of these tubewells so that the farmers could reap the benefits of this facility.  Mr. Badal also asked the MD of Punjab Water Resources Management & Development Corporation Limited to accomplish its allotted targets to install such more tubewells for providing enormous irrigation potential in the region in a time bound manner.

Prominent amongst others who attended the meeting included Chairman Markfed Jarnail Singh Wahid, Principal Secretary Irrigation KBS Sidhu, Special Principal Secretary to Chief Minister Gaggandip Singh Brar, Deputy Commissioner Hoshiarpur Dipinder Singh, MD Milkfed Balwinder Singh Sidhu, MD Punjab Water Resources Management & Development Corporation Limited DK Nijawan, Chief Engineer Kandi Canal Harvinder Singh and Chief Engineer Canals Vinod Chaudhary.