A total of 54 Jal Grams have been selected in Chhattisgarh under Jal Kranti Abhiyan (JKA), the Central Government has informed,
Under the Jal Gram Yojana component, two villages in each district preferably facing acute water scarcity have been envisaged for identification across country. So far, 1115 Jal Grams have been selected under the Jal Gram Yojana.
As per guidelines of JKA, selection of Jal Grams is done by District level Committee formed for implementation of JKA. Further, as provided in Step-by-Step Implementation Guide of JKA, a decision support tool uploaded on Central Water Commission website could be used for selection of Jal Grams. This tool can be used to compare water demand and availability and other factors for the proposed Jal Grams.
Jal Kranti Abhiyan, inter-alia, envisages preparation of Comprehensive Integrated Water Security Plan for each village identified under Jal Gram Yojana by the village level Committee taking into consideration the needs of the village which may include making provision for safe drinking water.
Jal Kranti Abhiyan is a convergence scheme and no separate funds have been provided for Integrated Water Security Plan of Jal Gram. Expenditure on various activities under Integrated Water Security Plan have been proposed through convergence of the existing schemes of Central / State Governments for example, Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (MGNREGS), Pradhan Mantri Krishi Sinchai Yojana (PMKSY), Integrated Watershed Management Programme (IWMP) etc.
Jal Kranti Abhiyan was initially envisaged for three years (2015-18). However, the objectives of Jal Kranti Abhiyan will continue to be served under various schemes of Central/State Governments, which have their own defined timelines.
Chhattisgarh has set an ambitious target of raising its irrigation potential to 3.2 million hectares by 2028, officials informed.
Notably, the State government has ensured usage of nearly 73 per cent of the extended irrigation capacity which is far better than many other states of the country, officials stated.
The actual irrigation capacity for Kharif season has doubled whereas the irrigation capacity for Rabi season has increased by 10 times, they stated.
Notably, the Chhattisgarh Government had also made all preparations to strengthen Central Government's Water Conservation and Management policy of ''Jal Kranti Abhiyaan'' .
A total of 54 severe water scarce villages have been selected for the Mission. Two villages from each of the 27 districts have been selected for the purpose .
Notably, the Chhattisgarh government is also reviving defunct check-dams across the State by repairing them in a bid to bolster its water conservation measures taken up across the State.
About 2, 600 new check dams had also been sanctioned and 679 check-dams had been constructed already. The excess water from the monsoons is being collected in this process. The water is being utilized for fish culture, officials informed.
Notably, over 1.24 lakh water augmentation works had been sanctioned under the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (MGNREGA) during the past 18 months (2015-2016) and till June 2016.
About 46,121 structures had already been constructed. This include construction of canals, deepening of canals, private construction of canals (dabri), construction of wells, check dams, Anicuts, canal lining, irrigation drains, soak pits and flood control structures.
The power consumption rate of agricultural irrigation pumps in Chhattisgarh have registered a phenomenal increase of 287 per cent during the past few years, officials of the State-owned power companies informed.
Currently over 3.73 lakh irrigation pumps are being used by farmers in Chhattisgarh.
Under the ‘Krishak Jeevan Jyoti Yojana’ run by the State government, on every 3 HP pumps 6,000 units and over 5 HP pumps 7,500 units are being provided free of cost to the farmers every year.
A master-plan for the development of horticulture had been prepared by the State Government on the basis of geographical distinction. There is four-times increase in acreage of horticulture and five times increase in the production of fruits, vegetables and flowers in the past thirteen years.
The horticulture crops include fruits, vegetables, flowers, spices, medicinal and scented plants. The acreage under horticulture is about seven lakh 92 thousand 943 hectares in 2015-2016. Earlier, in the year 2004-2005 the acreage under Horticulture crops had been about 2.55 lakh hectares of land.
Twenty -five villages are located in each Development block and in each village a minimum of 20 acres is identified. Each cluster will have 200 acre land.
Fruit crops are developed in almost all the districts of the State. Mangoes, bananas, papaya, guavas, lime, narangi, kathal, lemons, cashew-nuts, custard apple, litchi, watermelon, amala, cherries, sapotas (Chiku), pomegranate, coconuts and many other fruit-bearing trees are grown on a large-scale in the entire State.