The Hindu : Andhra Pradesh News : State tapping funds for irrigation projects

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Tuesday, Sep 14, 2004

Andhra Pradesh

Andhra Pradesh

State tapping funds for irrigation projects

By Our Special Correspondent

HYDERABAD, SEPT. 13. The State Government is planning to seek a five-year moratorium on interest on loans from the Centre for irrigation projects, citing its commitment to develop 65 lakh acres of ayacut in that time-frame.

It is exploring all possibilities to speed up the fund flow, enthused by the response of the financial institutions in investing on pending and new projects.

Fund diversion

The Government is also seeking diversion of unspent funds from the Accelerated Irrigation Benefit Programme (AIBP) for early completion of the projects. It has already sought Rs. 600 crores for the 10 projects that fall under the programme. The next move is to plead for inclusion of new projects in place of the completed ones under the AIBP. The Minister for Major Irrigation, P. Laxmaiah, told The Hindu that the Government was evolving a drainage scheme for the delta areas to exploit the fund provision under disaster management programme. At present the programme wasbeing utilised on an ad hoc basis and only nominal amounts were being sanctioned.

Good response

The Government's appeal for investments had evoked a good response from financial institutions like the LIC, Andhra Bank, Canara Bank and even the scheduled banks like the City Union Bank (the proposal from the bank is to the tune of Rs. 400 crores). The Oriental Bank of Commerce has already released Rs. 200 crores out of the Rs.500 crores it agreed to spend on the Tadipudi Lift Irrigation Scheme. The UTI proposal to take up five irrigation projects with Rs. 10,000 crores investment, with the payment schedule spread over nearly 30 years, has buoyed the Government.

Mr. Laxmaiah said the aim was to convert farm activity into a viable operation and to reduce the gap in the income from agriculture and other sectors.

Work on projects

Terming the criticism of the new irrigation policy `politically motivated,' the Minister said the Government was committed to irrigation development . He said measures like recruitment of staff and immediate grounding of works promised during Rajiv Palle Baata should dispel negative notions.

He said work on the long pending Gundlavagu, Chalivaagu (in Warangal), Vedadri second phase, Palampalli anicut and Tarakarama LI (Krishna), Godavari LI (West Godavari) and Gundlakamma and Ramateertham (Prakasam) had been started.

Printer friendly page
Send this article to Friends by E-Mail

Andhra Pradesh