MP approves Rs 7,546-cr Narmada, Parvati linking project for irrigation

The Madhya Pradesh government has approved the Rs 7,546-crore Narmada-Parvati river linking project that seeks to create irrigation facilities on 200,000 hectares of agriculture land in Malwa region of the state.

Narmada Control Board (NCB), in a meeting held yesterday, approved the project for linking the two rivers- Narmada and Parvati- in Malwa region, a public relations department official said. He added that chief minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan chaired the meeting.

The official said, "The construction of Narmada- Parvati river linking project will be completed in four phases. Each phase will create the capacity to irrigate at least 50,000-hectares."

The official added that the river-linking project would benefit farmers of 369 villages of Sehore and Shajapur districts.

"For this project, nearly 1.08-million-acre-feet water will be lifted from Indira Sagar Reservoir. The water for irrigation will be supplied through underground pipelines. The project would need acquisition of about eight hectares of land," the official said.

The official informed that the implementation of Narmada - Kshipra river linking project has been completed. It has sorted out the water crisis of Ujjain and Dewas districts, he said.

The Board also approved a Rs 41.41 crore proposal for the construction of 92 Narmada Yatri Nivas (passenger lodges) on the 1100-km long "Narmada Parikrama" (circumambulation) route passing through 16 districts," said the official.