Centre failed to deliver on irrigation projects: CAG

The Accelerated Irrigation Benefits Programme (AIBP) funded by the Centre has not achieved the desired results even after spending Rs 26,000 crore to boost agriculture, the latest report of the Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) has said.

The report also observed that the dams constructed on the Narmada did not realise the irrigation potential the authorities had initially promised.

The CAG report tabled in the Lok Sabha last week made its observations on the AIBP-approved irrigation projects across all states and said despite the crores of rupees that were spent over 13 years, the scheme has failed to deliver.

The CAG blamed the central government and its ministry of water resources for not monitoring the projects and poor planning. It said the Centre kept introducing new projects in states when several old ones were not completed.

Following a detailed deliberation on irrigation projects sanctioned under the Indira Sagar and Sardar Sarovar dams on the Narmada river, the CAG said that though there were cost over-runs, the projects failed to provide irrigation to farmers due to poor design.

It said the SSP was included under AIBP in 1996 at a cost of Rs 6,406 crore and was due to be completed by 2001. However, the last estimates notified in July, 2007 by the state government put the cost at Rs 35,046 crore.

Till March 2008, the total investment on SSP was Rs 26,353 crore, of which the GOI investment has been Rs 5.140 crore. It further observed that despite non-approval of revised estimates, the GOI released funds worth Rs 837 crore during 2007-08.

It said while the main canal was completed and the branch canal was almost 60 per cent complete, work on the minor canals and distributaries are only 16 to 28 per cent complete.

The report further said that despite the Planning Commission requirement to complete work in a vertical manner — to complete work on distributaries along the finished stretch of the canal as the work progresses — to benefit the farming community, the work was confined to construction of the main canal and the distributary network were neglected. As a result, in spite of the completion of the main stretch, the canals are useless.

On irrigation projects sanctioned under the Indira Sagar dam in Madhya Pradesh, the CAG said: Indira Sagar Project (Canal) was bifurcated into two phases but both remained incomplete even after a time overrun of over five years and an expenditure of Rs 1,182 crore (March 2008).