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Telangana govt on mission mode to improve lakes
Telangana government, which has taken up a gigantic task of restoring hundreds of water bodies under Mission Kakatiya, is set to launch the programme by February. The government, according to Minister for Irrigation T Harish Rao, is examining legal problems that might arise in implementation of the programme.
Hyderabad: Telangana government, which has taken up a gigantic task of restoring hundreds of water bodies under Mission Kakatiya, is set to launch the programme by February. The government, according to Minister for Irrigation T Harish Rao, is examining legal problems that might arise in implementation of the programme.
In all probability, the government will introduce a bill in the budget session of the Assembly to avoid possible hurdles. There could be problems in land acquisition if the government wants to expand the existing tanks or if it wants to reclaim some of the tank bed area which is in early stages of encroachment. The proposed act would help in overcoming such problems.
The minister, who was interacting with editors and senior journalists, said that the major problem the government could encounter was disposing the silt that would be dredged from the tanks. The government, he said, wants to avoid any mismanagement of disposing stilt by contractors or middlemen.
Hence, the irrigation department has decided to allow genuine farmers to transport the silt from the tank bed to their farms as it would benefit the farmers in more than one way. For every one rupee the farmer would spend on transportation, he would earn Rs 1.44 as he would be saving on chemical fertilizers and it would also help in enhancing the quality of the field.
Replying to a question, Rao said that the government was aware of the chemical impurities that had creeped into the soil and hence has decided to get all tests done before giving it to the farmer. He said there were certain places where the silt could cause more harm than good to the crops and such silt will not be given to the farmers.
In the first phase, the government will take up restoration work on 20 per cent of the tanks in nine districts. In urban areas like Hyderabad where 80 per cent of the tanks have been encroached upon and feeder channels of water bodies have vanished, the government would take a call later.
In each district, 20 per cent of the existing tanks would be taken up under Mission Kakatiya every year. The highest number of works will be taken up in Medak district. This district has 7,941 tanks and of this work on 1,588 tanks would be taken up followed by Mahbubnagar 1,496, Karimnagar 1,188 and Warangal 1,168. In all, 9,306 tanks will be restored during 2015.
Replying to a question, Rao said that they have simplified the rules and have done away with EPC to ensure that no scams take place. Since the time available to finish the work is four to five months before monsoon sets in, the government has reduced the time period of finalizing the tenders.
Asked about funds for this project, the minister said that Rs 2,000 crore has been earmarked in budget. In addition, Nabard has agreed to give Rs 650 crore and another Rs 1000 crore are expected for the project. The JICA and World Bank have also shown keen interest in this project to help in bringing down the carbon levels. While JICA is likely to give Rs 2000 crore the World Bank will also give another Rs 4000 crore in the next financial year.
By:V Ramu Sarma
