Centre concedes Amarinder's request to reduce state share in Shahpur Kandi dam project

The Centre has agreed to enhance its share in the Shahpur Kandi dam project on the Ravi river from 60 to 86 per cent, thus conceding Chief Minister Amarinder Singh's request to reduce Punjab's contribution to only 14 per cent, an official spokesperson said.

The revision of the Centre-state ratio in the national project by the Union Ministry of Water Resources, River Development and Ganga Rejuvenation has paved the way for augmenting the state's irrigation potential manifold, said the chief minister, after receiving a letter from the ministry to this effect.

The chief minister thanked the Centre for conceding his request to facilitate the state to cope with the increasing demand for canal irrigation. The move, he said in a statement here Friday evening, would help the state save nearly Rs 150 crore.

As per the letter received from the central ministry, the estimated cost of the Shahpur Kandi project was Rs 2,715.70 crore, of which the irrigation component - 28.61 per cent of approved cost - and power component - 71.39 per cent of approved cost - amounted to Rs. 776.96 crore and Rs 1,938.74 crores respectively.

"The approved central assistance of Rs 485.38 crore would be provided for the balance works portion of the irrigation component of the said project amounting to Rs 564.63 crore. The entire state share of the irrigation component, the total cost of the power component and the establishment cost of the project would be borne by the Punjab government," the official spokesperson said.

He said the completion of the main dam balance portion of the Ravi Canal and siphon for the Kashmir canal would be completed by 2021. The entire project would be completed by June 2022.

Funding for central assistance to the implementation of the Shahpurkandi dam would be made through NABARD under the existing system for funding of 99 Pradhan Mantri Krishi Sinchayee Yojana (PMKSY)-Accelerated Irrigation Benefit Programme (AIBP) project, under Long Term Irrigation Fund (LTIF), as per the same terms and conditions.

The project would be implemented by the punjab government. The implementation schedule is from December this year to June 2022.

In addition to the existing monitoring mechanism for project Central Water Commission, a committee headed by Member, Central Water Commission, and consisting of the concerned Chief Engineers of Punjab and Jammu and Kashmir and other concerned officers will be constituted to oversee the implementation of the project and ensure its construction as per the agreement between the two states.