Water Resources Minister Brijmohan Agrawal on Thursday directed officials to prepare a master plan for augmenting irrigational facilities in all such districts which currently lack sufficient irrigational facilities.
Chairing a review meeting of various works undertaken by his department attended by the chief engineer and all the executive engineers at the conference hall of the department’s data centre here, Agrawal said that an elaborate action plan be prepared for repairing old canals and cleaning work must be taken up at all the old reservoirs in the State.
He said that it would be the prime responsibility of the officials to ensure that the department’s irrigational target also matches the facilities required by the farmers. Agrawal said, atleast 90 per cent of the water must be provided to the farmers from the irrigational reservoirs and stop-dams in the State. The meeting also ratified the proposal to provide irrigational water for 1.15 lakh hectares of land for the Rabi season crops. The Minister directed the officials to commence the preparations for supplying irrigational water to the farmers as per the proposal well in advance.
Agrawal also directed officials in the meeting that small and medium level dams be constructed after preparing a Master Plan for districts with less number of irrigational facilities. The officials must ensure that irrigational water reaches the land of small and medium level farmers for cultivation and the Mastar Plan for the same must be prepared accordingly, the Minister said.
The farmer is the focal point of all our work. It is our moral responsibility to help the farmers out which has to be met with all seriousness , he said. Agrawal said that the Department’s pace of work and improvement in its quality must be visible to the people. The Minister said that the farmers must also get all irrigational benefits from the Anicuts constructed in the State. Agrawal directed officials to prepare a technical report of all Anicuts to augment irrigational facilities from them while stating that sufficient water must be available in them round the year besides in Stop dams. The Minister asked for preparation of a report on Anicuts which go dry during summer season and devise solutions so that water could be made available in them during the summer season.
He said that a time-bound Action Plan must also be prepared for appointing employees on compassionate grounds and filling up of all vacant posts. Agrawal also stated that use of Information Technology be made for departmental work for which an elaborate proposal must be prepared by the Department. The meeting on Thursday was attended by Additional Chief Secretary, Water Resources Department N K Aswal and Principal Engineer H R Kutare.