Sambalpur, Jan 4: Gangadhar Utha Jalasechan Prakalpa (lift irrigation project), a promise made by Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik in 2019 general elections, will be completed by the end of March 2023.
The project is designed to irrigate 31,500 hectares of land in a total five blocks, mainly consisting of rain-fed areas.
State Water Resource Minister Raghunandan Das who on Tuesday held a review meeting on the project in Bargarh said the main canal will be 34 KM long with further branch canals meant for increasing irrigation potentiality of the region and also strengthen the very financial backbone of the farmers.
BJD MLAs Debesh Acharya and Rita Sahu, District collector Monisha Mukherjee, chief engineer of Hirakud Dam Project (HDP) Ananda Chandra Sahu and all senior officials of the water resources department were present at the meeting .
Chief Engineer A. C. Sahu said under the project, water would be lifted from Turum, one of the tail ends of Bargarh canal system under Hirakud command area, through a 3.8meter diameter iron pipe to higher places and then be distributed through earthen canal system.
“Four blocks of Bargarh district and one block of Subarnapur (Sonepur) district would get the benefit of this lift irrigation project.
About 15, 600 hectares from Bijepur block will get the irrigation facility. Apart from Bijepur, three other blocks of the district such as,” Sohela, Barpali and Bargarh would also be benefited, Sahu said.
