Govt To Invest Rs 75,000 Crore In Water Resources In 5 Years, Says Naveen

Bhubaneswar: Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik on Friday felicitated the Water Resources teams of Odisha and Ganjam district for winning the National Water Awards.

Appreciating the commitment and efforts of the state and district officials, the Chief Minister expected the same commitment would continue so that Odisha would be a role model for others at national and international level. Odisha received the award as the second best state in water conservation and management, while Ganjam was selected as the best district in the country at 4th National Water Awards.

Stating that the Water Resources Department is implementing 5-T principles in letter and spirit, Naveen said many irrigation projects including Lower Suktel, Kanupur, Subarnarekha and Chheligada are nearing completion.

“My government provides top priority to development of water resources. We have completed a number of projects in recent years in this sector. Any impact in water resources has tremendous impact in agriculture and lives of our farmers,” he said.

Highlighting the initiatives of the state in water resources, the chief minister said in last four years, his government has approved projects worth Rs 46,000 crore for the sector and committed to invest Rs 75,000 crore in next five years.

“The Water Resources Department needs to formulate strategies and build climate resilient sustainable water infrastructure to make Odisha a water secure state at the earliest. Besides, all collectors need to take up water conservation measures on a large scale as done by Collector, Ganjam to meet the water requirement of their Districts,” he added.

Water Resources Minister Tukuni Sahoo said her department would work hard to fulfill the objectives of the Chief Minister. Chief Secretary PK Jena, Development Commission and ACS Water Resources Anu Garg also spoke. 5-T secretary VK Pandian and other senior officers were present.