Ujh Project will be a game changer: Dogra
Excelsior Correspondent
JAMMU, May 18 : Expressing pleasure his great approval of Modified Detailed Project Report to Ujh Multipurpose Project by the Central Committee, Union Minister of State in PMO, Dr Jitendra Singh termed it a dream project which according to him will now benefit people of Jammu and Kashmir (particularly of Kathua belt) more than neighbouring Pakistan.
”The three-decade-old Kathua’s Ujh River Multipurpose Project has finally been cleared by the Jal Shakti Ministry of the Central Government,” Dr Singh, who is also MP from Kathua-Udhampur-Doda Parliamentary Constituency said that not only the people of the Jammu belt will be immensely benefitted with the project but the entire State.
The project was declared a national project way back in 2008, which means all the expenses will be borne by the Centre, estimated to remain around Rs 9,167 crore.
“When the previous DPRs were submitted, we realised that our consumption of water was just about 35 to 40 per cent and rest of the water was going to Pakistan, which would have been great violation of Indus Water Treaty (IWT), sharing away our own water with Pakistan,” said the Union Minister.
”The previous J&K Governments and the Machinery in the Central Government kept blaming each other of delaying the project but in 2014, when Nitin Gadkari took over the Water Resources Ministry, the matter was taken up with him immediately,” the Union MoS said.
Though an aggressive exercise was done to get it approved, but it hanged on due to the Model Code of Conduct coming into force, in view of 2019 Parliamentary elections, he added.
Paving the way for the J&K’s dream project to see the light of the day, Dr Singh said that the Central Advisory Committee for consideration of techno-economic viability of major and medium irrigation, flood control and multipurpose project proposals, finally accorded approval to the modified DPR of Ujh Multipurpose Project at an estimated cost Rs 9167 crore (December, 2019 Price Level) on May 14.
”Ujh-Multipurpose Project has been revived in the Modi led Govt after nearly three decades,” Dr Singh said adding that the project has been approved so that the surplus water from the dam, instead of flowing into Pakistan would be made to flow through the canal into neighbouring States of Punjab, Haryana and Rajasthan.
”Many of the activists had been, from time to time, raising the bogey of stopping the water to Pakistan under the Indus Water Treaty of 1960, without realizing that even the India’s share of water was flowing into Pakistan,” he added.
After the revised DPRs, the total command area (for irrigation) would be 40,716 hectares, instead of 16,743 hectares as per the old plans and the Billawar belt will also get benefitted upto maximum extent with its approval.
Meanwhile former District president, BJP and senior party leaders from Kathua Prem Nath Dogra, another senior leader Raghunandan Babloo today complimented Prime Minister, Narendra Modi, Union Home Minister, Amit Shah, Union Water Resources Minister, Union Minister in PMO, Dr Jitendra Singh and LG J&K, G C Murmur for sanctioning this game changing project.
Dogra said that full credit of getting this project and other projects in his Parliamentary constituency of Kathua, Udhampur and Doda goes to Union Minister, Dr Jitendra Singh and with the completion of these projects there will be economic prosperity in the entire region. He said the project will bring cheers on the faces of farmers while the J&K will get 196 additional mw of power also.
Dogra held the previous Congress and NC governments responsible for throwing the proposal of the project in the dustbin as they were not interested in the development of J&K in general and Jammu region in particular with the result the people of the region suffered a lot.
Others present in the press conference included Naresh Goswami, Bhupinder Kumar and Jaspreet Singh. They said that with the start of work the project will also generate employment avenues for the people.
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