Bhubaneswar: Odisha government has decided to make 102 additional irrigation projects operational in one year at a cost of Rs 207 crore in Shergad and Hinjilikatu blocks of Ganjam district.
5T and Nabin Odisha chairman VK Pandian said this at a meeting with farmers in Shergad block office on Saturday. Stating that chief minister Naveen Patnaik has taken several steps to ensure irrigation to every acre of cultivable land, he said 90% of farm land in Shergad and 99% in Hinjili will be irrigated in one year.
Detailing the plan, Pandian said the irrigated area in Shergad panchayat will be increased from 9,314 hectare (ha) to 14,172 ha covering 90.56% of the total farm land. The irrigation will be provided to 21 panchayats through 66 projects.
Similarly in Hinjili, 13,779 ha of the total 14,470 ha cultivable land is irrigated covering 95.22% now. Of the rest area, 621 ha will be irrigated through different projects. The government plans to achieve 99.5% irrigated land through 37 projects in 13 panchayats at a cost of Rs 20.45 crore, Pandian said.
He also reviewed the progress of the ongoing transformation work of Maa Budhi Thakurani Temple at Berhampur for Rs 18.91 crore and Khambeya Dora Junior Science College at Pochilima in Hinjili block for Rs 1.71 crore.