The Government of India has selected Nalgonda, Adilabad and Warangal districts in Telangana for implementation of Pradhan Mantri Krishi Sinchayee Yojana (PMKSY) to be implemented for five years beginning from the current financial year.
Minister for Irrigation T. Harish Rao held a review meeting here on Saturday on sending the proposal to the Centre for implementation of the pilot project. Principal Secretary (Irrigation) S.K. Joshi, Advisor (Irrigation) R. Vidyasagar Rao, Engineer-in-Chief C. Muralidhar, Chief Engineers B. Shankar and Madhusudhan Rao and others attended the meeting.
The engineers explained to the Minister that the objective of the programme was to achieve convergence of investments in irrigation at the field level. It was being planned to achieve the objective by expanding cultivable area under assured irrigation, irrigating every agricultural field (‘har khet ko pani), improving on-farm water use efficiency to reduce wastage of water and enhancing the adoption of precision-irrigation and other water saving technologies (more crop per drop).
Besides, they stated that it was also aimed at enhancing recharge of aquifers and introducing sustainable water conservation practices by exploring the feasibility of reusing treated municipal water for peri-urban agriculture and attracting private investment in precision irrigation system. The Centre had allocated Rs. 5,300 crore for current year out of Rs. 50,000 crore to be spent over five years.
Later, during the review on Accelerated Irrigation Benefit Programme (AIBP) the Engineer-in-Chief explained that Rs. 59.5 crore for 2014-15 and Rs. 112.2 crore for 2015-16 grants were due from the Centre to Devadula lift irrigation project. The minister told the authorities to take up the matter with the Centre again by taking the help of State’s MPs.
Further, the minister told the officials to send clarifications to the queries raised by the Centre on SRSP flood flow canal and Komaram Bheem projects so that clearances could be get at the earliest. The officials told the minister that the proposals for modernisation fo Nizamsagar were already sent to the Centre and clarifications sought by hydrology wing of the Central Water Commission (CWC) were also submitted.
The officials stated that the CWS had sent 182 proposals under Mission Kakatiya to the Union Water Resources Ministry for assistance of Rs. 125 crore under the scheme of Repair, Renovation and Restoration of water bodies and another 150 proposals were being sent.
Source: The Hindu