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Thursday, Jul 20, 2006

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Water projects: GoM to review norms

Gargi Parsai

Water Resources Ministry wants to abandon norms that are not working

NEW DELHI: The Centre has constituted a Group of Ministers (GoM) to review the Water Resources Ministry proposal for relaxing norms for the Accelerated Irrigation Benefit Programme (AIBP) for speedier completion of water projects. The proposal was deferred in the last meeting of the Union Cabinet.

Union Agriculture Minister Sharad Pawar will chair the GoM with Finance Minister P. Chidambaram, Water Resources Minister Saifuddin Soz, Rural Development Minister Raghuvansh Prasad Singh, Urban Development Minister Jaipal Reddy, Mines Minister Sis Ram Ola and Panchayati Raj Minister Mani Shankar Aiyar as members. Deputy Chairman of Planning Commission Montek Singh Ahluwalia will be a special invitee.

The Water Resources Ministry wants to simplify the procedure and drop norms that were not working. It plans to do away with the condition that a new project could be included under AIBP funding only when an already sanctioned project was completed. It suggested that the AIBP be extended to all eligible irrigation projects on the basis of the area made irrigable within a timeframe. The extension, renovation and modernisation of minor irrigation projects should also be included in this.

Based on 90 per cent utilisation of the funds, next year's instalments should be released, was the Ministry's proposal.

Instead of four categories of States and fund composition, the Ministry suggested there be only two categories. These would be the special-category States including drought-prone districts of Orissa, Jammu and Kashmir, Himachal Pradesh, Sikkim and the north-east. The rest of the States would fall into the non-special category.

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