Government to ensure 100% utilisation of canal water: Minister Goyal

The Punjab Government, led by Chief Minister Bhagwant Singh Mann, announced it would strive to increase productivity in fields, save electricity, and prevent further depletion of the water table by ensuring 100 per cent utilisation of canal water for irrigation.

The announcement was made by Punjab Water Resources Minister Barinder Kumar Goyal after inaugurating a 24-km paved section (lining and rehabilitation) of the second Patiala feeder canal at Jaurepul near here on Friday.

“While earlier only about 68 per cent of the water received from dams was utilised properly, the rest was allowed to go to waste. Our government has facilitated the usage of 84 per cent of the canal water by undertaking technical up-gradation of banks and the basin,” said Goyal, assuring that the government was poised to ensure 100 per cent usage of the canal sources.

Elaborating on the project, Goyal said it was completed within in a record time of six weeks at a cost of only Rs 36 crore, against the estimated cost of Rs 42 crore. He said it would benefit farmers of 10 blocks in Patiala, Malerkotla, Sangrur, and Mansa, besides parts of the Ludhiana district.

The minister said that the paving of the canal banks was bound to increase agricultural productivity as the canal water contained extra essential elements required for the growth and development of crops. Saving electricity and preventing the depletion of the water table were among the other benefits cited by him.

Goyal further stated that, ultimately, the project would promote agriculture in approximately 4,00,000 acres across 10 blocks of Patiala, Sangrur, Malerkotla, and Mansa districts, as these would now receive 1,617 cusecs of water, which was almost double the earlier efficacy. Goyal emphasised that the Punjab Government was committed to strengthening agriculture, which was the backbone of the state’s economy.

MLAs Manwinder Singh Giaspura, Professor Jaswant Singh Gajjan Majra, Gurdev Singh Mann, and Chairman of Improvement Trust Malerkotla Saqib Ali Raja were prominent among those present on the occasion.