Odisha Govt to irrigate additional 0.92 lakh hectare Land

Odisha government on Tuesday said it would set up 1600 lift irrigation projects this year to irrigate 0.92 lakh hectare more land in addition to 28.32 lakh hectare of irrigated land.

The government was committed to expedite works for construction of barrage and canal at Galudhi in Jharkhand under Subernarekha inter-state irrigation project, said Parliamentary Affairs Minister Raghunath Mohanty who on behalf of Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik, replied on the budget demand of water resources department.

As many as 20,000 hectare of land would be irrigated through the Subernarekha project.

Of the total 61.65 lakh hectare of cultivable land in the state, 46 per cent of it (28.32 Lakh hectare) was irrigated. "While water resources department provided irrigation facilities in 23.01 lakh hectare of land, 5.31 lakh hecatre land got water from well, tube-wells and water shed projects," Mohanty said.

Elaborating on the government plan for the 2009-10 fiscal year, Mohanty said that as many as 61 new small irrigation projects would come up during the period.

The government was also planning to store water in lower Indra Irrigation Project and a water reservoir at Titlagah in Balangir district with an aim to provide water for cultivation. While lower Indra Irrigation Project would irrigate about 5,000 hectare of land in 2010, he said.

"We are also planning to start work of the dam project over the Aung river this year," the minister said adding that Rs 1403.53 crore was earmarked for big and medium irrigation projects during 2009-10 of the total budget estimate of Rs 1800 crore for the department.