Bhubaneswar: Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik inaugurated the Parvati Giri Mega Lift Irrigation (LI) project at the State Secretariat here through video conference on Saturday.
As many as 41 LI points were inaugurated under the project. These will be able to irrigate more than 50,022 hectares of farmland in nine districts.
The nine districts are Gajapati, Kalahandi, Nabarangpur, Bargarh, Bolangir, Jharsuguda, Sambalpur, Boudh and Subarnapur.
Stating that irrigation has an important role in the development of agriculture, the Chief Minister promised to facilitate LI to more than 10 lakh hectares of farmland by 2019. Till now, LI facility is available in more than seven lakh hectares.
The state government has planned to provide for the irrigational needs of over 2,86,000 hectares of
farmland through 199 such projects under the Parvati Giri Mega LI Project in 23 districts of Odisha.
The project is popular in the highland or mountainous areas of Odisha, said the Chief Minister.
In the coming years, the state government will try to provide this facility to more farmers, informed the Chief Minister, adding that Rs 10,000 crore will be spent for this within five years.
Leader of Opposition (LoP) Narasingha Mishra expressed gratitude to the Chief Minister for this effort of the state government, which it had promised earlier. He also requested the Chief Minister to provide more irrigation facilities in Bolangir district.
A book on Parvati Giri Mega LI Project was released on the occasion by the Chief Minister.
Chief Engineer and the employees of the Mega LI Project donated a cheque of Rs 1.5 lakh cheque to the Chief Minister’s Relief Fund.
State Finance Minister Sashi Bhushan Behera, Agriculture Minister Pradeep Maharathy, Food Supplies and Consumer Welfare Minister Surjya Narayan Patro and the Chief Secretary were also present.
