By Our Correspondent
BHUBANESWAR: If irrigation is expanded in the state, agriculture will grow, if agriculture grows, farmers’ income will grow and if farmers prosper, Odisha will prosper. On this basis, the Central Government under the leadership of Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi and the State Government under the leadership of Chief Minister Shri Mohan Charan Majhi are continuously working to provide water to the fields of farmers in Odisha.
In the last two years, about 54 thousand crores of water infrastructure work has been approved in Odisha. This is not only a big economic estimate; it is a big investment in the future of farmers in Odisha. In the last two years, about 3.2 lakh hectares of additional irrigation facilities have been provided to agricultural land. This will reduce the dependence of farmers on rain and give them the opportunity to cultivate with more certainty. 770 new check dams and 9 riverine water conservation projects have been completed in the state. In addition, 1,312 old check dams have been renovated.
This means that the government is giving equal importance to water conservation along with irrigation. Similarly, in the last two years, 6 mega lift irrigation projects and 32 minor irrigation projects have been completed in the state. In addition, work is underway on 58 new mega lift irrigation projects, which are of special importance to the farmers of upland and water-deprived areas. On the other hand, the dam work of Kanupur Irrigation Project on Baitarani River in Keonjhar district, which was stalled for a long time, was completed on August 31. The aim is to complete the canal network in the state within the next one year and irrigate about 25,000 hectares of land. This is not a government of promises, but a government of action, said State President Shri Manmohan Samal.
