30 river linking projects approved

Minister of Water Resources Nitin Gadkari said 285 new irrigation projects will be taken up by next year to provide irrigation for 1 crore 88 lakh hectare of land.

Gadkari said drip irrigation and irrigation through pipeline will be the priority areas for the Government as this will save large amount of water and also cut down the cost involved in acquiring land.

He pointed out that water, power, transport and communication are the four most important pillars of development.

Gadkari said 30 projects for river linking have been approved out of which work on three projects namely Ken-Betwa, Par-Tapi Narmada and Daman Ganga Pinjal will start within three months.

The Government is also exploring the possibility of creating a large fund for inter liking of rivers and explore the possibility of using recycled water for NTPC power plants, he said at the India Water Week inauguration on 10 October.

Meanwhile, the Government has proposed the World Bank-backed Rs.6,000 crore National Ground Water Management improvement scheme for sustainable management of ground water.

About 1500 delegates from India and 13 other countries are attending the five-day international event. The theme of India Water Week – 2017 is “Water and Energy for Inclusive Growth”. fii-news.com