Karnataka - Bidar   

23 irrigation projects will be completed this year: Minister

Staff Correspondent

Rs. 1,000 crore allocated for completing pending projects

Taking stock: Minister for Water Resources K.S. Eshwarappa at the construction site of the bridge-cum-barrage at Chandapur in Bhalki taluk.

Bidar: The State Government will complete 23 long pending irrigation projects this year, Minister for Water Resources K.S. Eshwarappa said in Bhalki on Thursday.

The Irrigation Department was taking up the works on priority, rather than planning and announcing new schemes. “We had hoped to complete 39 projects last year, of them, 35 were completed. The remaining will be completed this year. Apart from them, another 19 long pending projects will also be completed this year,” Mr. Eshwarappa told presspersons. He was speaking after laying the foundation stone for the four bridge-cum-barrages across the Manjra in Bhalki taluk.

The State Government had filled over 1,000 vacancies of engineers in the department, and provided a budgetary grant of over Rs. 1,000 crore for completing pending projects. “We will go ahead with pending projects such as Kalasa Banduri, Gandori Nala and Upper Bhadra project,” he said. The Minister said projects such as the Chulki Nala, lower Mullamari and Karanja projects in Bidar would be completed in a year.

Later, addressing a public rally, Mr. Eshwarappa said strict action would be taken against engineers who had committed irregularities in the execution of projects. Many inquiries had been completed and suspension of officials had been ordered. “We will ensure that the misused amount will be recovered from their salaries,” the Minister said.

MLA Prakash Khandre said that Maharashtra had completed a bridge-cum-barrages across the Manjra 20 years ago.

He said that the people of Bhalki taluk had been benefited from the bridge-cum-barrages in Lakhangaon and Sandhi Kammat villages that were completed recently.

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