Bhopal (Madhya Pradesh): Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan on Thursday welcomed the Union cabinet's approval for the Ken-Betwa inter-linking of rivers project and said it will open new doors of development in the Bundelkhand region of the state.
The completion of the Rs 44,605 crore-project will boost agricultural production in the area and provide relief from water crisis, the chief minister said in a statement.
The Union cabinet chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Wednesday approved the funding and implementation of the Ken-Betwa inter-linking of rivers project.
The total cost of the project has been assessed at Rs 44,605 crore. The cabinet has approved Central support of Rs 39,317 crore for the project, covering grant of Rs 36,290 crore and a loan of Rs 3,027 crore, it was stated.
The project will benefit the water-starved Bundelkhand region, spread across Madhya Pradesh and neighbouring Uttar Pradesh, it said.
As per the statement, the project heralds the beginning of interstate cooperation to implement the Prime Minister's vision of carrying water from areas that have surplus to drought-prone regions through the interlinking of rivers.
The project will benefit Panna, Tikamgarh, Chhatarpur, Sagar, Damoh, Datia, Vidisha, Shivpuri and Raisen districts of Madhya Pradesh and Banda, Mahoba, Jhansi and Lalitpur in Uttar Pradesh, Chouhan said.
The chief minister further said that the move will boost socio-economic prosperity in the backward Bundelkhand region by aiding agricultural activities and generate employment.
It will also help prevent distress migration from this region, he said.
The Ken-Betwa project involves the transfer of water from the Ken river to the Betwa river through the construction of the Daudhan dam (the Lower Orr project, Kotha Barrage) and a canal linking the two rivers (the Bina Complex Multipurpose project).
The project will provide an annual irrigation of 10.62 lakh hectors of land, drinking water to a population of about 62 lakh and also generate 103 MW of hydropower and 27 MW solar power, the statement said.
The project is expected to be implemented in eight years with state-of-the-art technology, it added.
