Today marks the 100th birth anniversary of Bharat Ratna and former Prime Minister Late Atal Bihari Vajpayee Ji, who proclaimed ‘Kadam Milakar Chalana Hoga’. Heartfelt tributes to the visionary of India's development, the revered Shri Atal Ji.

The revered Atal Ji, from being an RSS volunteer to the editor of Rashtradharma, and from his responsibilities in the Jansangh to the Bharatiya Janata Party, nurtured generations of dedicated workers. His vision of individual development, societal progress, and nation-building provided a strong foundation for the country.

To make the earth fertile and prosperous, and to establish new dimensions of development, the revered Atal Ji envisioned the River Linking Project nearly 20 years ago. He dreamed of connecting the rivers across the country to manage the scattered water resources efficiently. His vision was to interlink the rivers of the nation so that every drop of water could be utilized for the welfare of society and the nation. On his 100th birth anniversary, a significant step is being taken in Madhya Pradesh with the Ken-Betwa project, the world's first river-linking initiative, to provide a sustainable solution for water security.

I am delighted to share that today, our esteemed Prime Minister and the modern-day Bhagirath, Shri Narendra Modi Ji, will lay the foundation stone of the nation's first and ambitious Ken-Betwa River Linking National Project in Khajuraho. With this, the revered Atal Ji's vision of interlinking rivers and achieving prosperity will take a concrete shape.

Madhya Pradesh, the cradle of rivers, is blessed with abundant water resources from hundreds of rivers. With the blessings of these rivers, this multipurpose project will become the lifeline of Bundelkhand.

This project is being developed on the Ken River in Chhatarpur and Panna districts of Madhya Pradesh. It includes the construction of the Daudhan Dam on the Ken River within the Panna Tiger Reserve, with a height of 77 meters and a length of 2.13 kilometers, along with two tunnels. The dam will store 2,853 million cubic meters of water.

Through a pressurized micro-irrigation system, the project will enable irrigation across 8.11 lakh hectares of land in approximately 2,000 villages of 10 districts in Madhya Pradesh, including Panna, Damoh, Tikamgarh, Chhatarpur, Niwari, Sagar, Raisen, Vidisha, Shivpuri, and Datia. Nearly 7 lakh farming families will benefit from this initiative.

Additionally, it will provide drinking water to a population of 44 lakh in Madhya Pradesh and 21 lakh in Uttar Pradesh. The project will also generate 103 MW of hydroelectric power and 27 MW of solar energy, benefiting the entire state of Madhya Pradesh.

The Ken-Betwa River Linking National Project will ensure that water reaches every field in Bundelkhand for irrigation. The state will have an abundant supply of water for electricity, agriculture, industry, and drinking needs. With water reaching the fields, crops will flourish, bringing prosperity to farmers' lives and transforming the future of Bundelkhand.

This project will boost agriculture, industry, business, and tourism, halting migration and improving the lives of citizens. The abundance of water will address both flood and drought issues.

Our commitment is to development along with heritage. Moving forward with this goal, the project will also work on preserving 42 historic Chandel period ponds. These ponds will fill with water during the monsoon, raising the groundwater level and benefiting the people.

Madhya Pradesh is an agriculture-based state. Our goal is to increase the area under irrigation from 5 million hectares to 10 million hectares. I am confident that the Ken-Betwa River Linking National Project will help us achieve this target, and it will open new doors for the progress of Bundelkhand. With this confidence, I had urged the farmers of Bundelkhand not to sell their land, as the solution to the region's drought would come. I am happy that my belief has proven to be correct.

It is a matter of great joy for us that Madhya Pradesh is currently celebrating ‘Jan-Kalyan Parv. On the 100th birth anniversary of Atal Ji, the signing of the tripartite agreement for the Ken-Betwa River Linking National Project is a remarkable coincidence, bringing a great gift to the people of the state.

(Author is the Chief Minister of Madhya Pradesh)