Govt appoints key staff to expedite Rs 2,300-cr Malwa Canal project

The state government has appointed officials on key positions to expedite the Rs 2,300-crore Malwa Canal project, for which the land acquisition process had formally started last month.

The 149-km-long canal will have water carrying capacity of 2,000 cusecs. It will help irrigate nearly 2 lakh acres in Muktsar, Ferozepur and Faridkot districts. The canal will originate at Harike headworks on the Sutlej.

To expedite the land acquisition and oversee the progress on ground, the Water Resources Department has appointed an executive engineer at Ferozepur and two sub-divisional engineers, one each at Ferozepur and Gidderbaha.

Two junior engineers, one each at Ferozepur and Gidderbaha, have been appointed to supervise technical work related to the canal. In addition, a retired tehsildar has been tasked with ensuring timely completion of land acquisition. The former tehsildar will also monitor all revenue-related proceedings.

Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann, who had visited the project site at Doda village in Muktsar last year, had described it as the state’s first canal to be built after Independence and a “dream project” for the Malwa region.

So far, land acquisition has been notified in 22 villages of Muktsar, covering 822 acres.

“We have been assigned the task to fast-track the work so that farmers could avail the benefit of this canal soon. As of now, some farmers have come with objections related to the ‘khasra’ number of the land notified for the acquisition,” said Ramanpreet Singh, Executive Engineer, Malwa Canal, Ferozepur.