The Rs 9,802-crore project will facilitate irrigation of 14.04 lakh hectares of land and benefit 25-30 lakh farmers of over 6,200 villages in nine eastern UP districts
File photo of Prime Minister Narendra Modi
Prime Minister Narendra Modi will inaugurate the Rs 9,802 crore Saryu Canal National project in Uttar Pradesh’s Balrampur district on 11 December.
The project, which is the biggest in Uttar Pradesh, will benefit 25-30 lakh farmers of over 6,200 villages in nine eastern UP districts of Bahraich, Gonda, Shravasti, Balrampur, Basti, Siddharthnagar, Sant Kabir Nagar, Gorakhpur and Maharajganj, Jal Shakti Minister Mahendra Singh said.
The project, which was started in 1978, has been completed due to expeditious handling by the prime minister, Singh told reporters in Bahraich on Thursday.
It will facilitate irrigation of 14.04 lakh hectares of land and at the same time, reduce the risk of floods in several flood-prone areas of the region due to water coming from Nepal, he said.
Five rivers have been connected under this project, including Ghagra, Saryu, Rapti, Banganga and Rohin, while canals with a length of 6,600 kilometers have been linked to the 318 km long main canal.
The state government started this project on a small scale in 1978 for irrigation in two districts at a cost of Rs 78.68 crore. Four years later in 1982, it was expanded to nine districts. Its name was changed to Saryu Canal National Project and the cost was increased to a whopping Rs 9,802 crore by 2021.
Last month, Modi unveiled various irrigation projects in Mahoba district for the Bundelkhand region with the aim of alleviating the problem of water shortage. Among the projects were the Arjun Sahayak Project, the Ratauli Weir Project, the Bhaoni Dam Project, and the Majhgaon-Chilli Sprinkler Project. He also inaugurated the Purvanchal Expressway.
On 18 December, Modi will lay foundation of the 600-km, six-lane Ganga Expressway, which connects Meerut to Prayagraj, in Shahjahanpur district. According to Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath, the expressway is set to be country’s longest one. The government plans to build industrial clusters and an airstrip along the highway in Shahjahanpur for emergency landings and the operation of air-ambulances.
These developments gain in significance with the Uttar Pradesh Assembly elections slated to be held early next year.
With input from agencies
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