Bhubaneswar: Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik today said that his government has approved projects worth Rs 46,000 crore for water sector development in the last four years and committed to invest another Rs 75,000 crore in next five years.
The Chief Minister has asked the Water Resources Department to formulate strategies and build climate resilient sustainable water infrastructure to make Odisha a water secure state at the earliest.
Shri Patnaik today felicitated the Water Resources Team of Odisha and Ganjam district for the success in getting National Water Awards. Appreciating the commitment and efforts of the state and district officials, the Chief Minister expected the same commitment would continue so that Odisha would be a role model to others at National and International level.
Secretary to CM V K Pandian moderated the meeting.
It may be recalled here that while the State has received the award as the second best State in water conservation and management, the Ganjam district has got the top award among the districts at 4th National Water Awards. A felicitation programme was organized at Lok Seva Bhawan for the purpose.
He asked all Collectors to take up water conservation measures on a large scale as done by Collector Ganjam to meet the water requirement of their Districts.
Shri Patnaik said that the Water Resources Department is implementing 5-T principles in letter and spirit. And the results are here to see. Many of the irrigation projects such as Lower Suktel, Kanupur project, Subarnarekha, Chheligada and many other projects are nearing completion. “My sincere appreciation to the entire team”, he praised the Department.
The CM continued that the kind of in-stream storage structures and mega lift projects have been taken up will change the face of irrigation potential of the state and in turn, the lives of millions of State farmers.
Stating that his government provides top priority to development of water resources, Patnaik said, “We have completed a number of projects in recent years to fulfill the aspirations of people. Expectations of people from the Government have been growing. So, we should keep working hard. Any impact on water resources has a tremendous impact in agriculture and in the lives of our farmers.”, he advised.
Speaking on the occasion, Water Resources Minister Tukuni Sahoo praised the vision of the Chief Minister for taking Odisha on the path of transformation. She cited the example of Kalahandi and spoke about its transformation in food production. She assured that the Department would work hard to fulfill the objectives of the Chief Minister.
Chief Secretary Pradeep Jena appreciated the efforts of the Water Resources Department in providing irrigation facilities, water conservation, participation of farmers in Pani Panchayat and its efforts in reducing the impact of climate change.
Development Commission and ACS Water Resources, Anu Garg highlighted the achievement of the Department and how different irrigation projects are changing the lives of people in water scarce districts.
During the programme, Collector Ganjam Dibyajyoti Parida, and two Field Officers – Engineer Susant Majhi and Engineer Purna Chandra Panigrahi shared their experiences in implementing various projects of the department. They highlighted that the team efforts and focus on timely completion of projects have led to this success.
