Farmers agree to give land for completing pending stretch of Saraswati River
Saraswati river rejuvenation project got delayed as around 10km stretch of the 67-km river in the district is missing in the revenue records of 11 villages and the government will require a total of 51 acres to complete the pending work
: The efforts of the BJP-led Haryana government for the revival of the Saraswati river got a boost on Wednesday, with farmers of six villages offering to give their land for the completion of a pending stretch of the mystic river in Yamunanagar district.
According to information, Saraswati river rejuvenation project got delayed as around 10km stretch of the 67-km river in the district is missing in the revenue records of 11 villages and the government will require a total of 51 acres to complete the pending work.
Vice chairman of Saraswati Heritage Board Dhumman Singh Kirmach said that during a meeting held in Bilaspur, the farmers of five villages- Machhrauli, Mohdi, Bhawanipur, Milk Khas and Chanda Khedi- have agreed to give around 31 acres of land to complete the 50-foot wide 6km stretch of the Saraswati river passing through these villages.
He said that now, another meeting with farmers of the remaining six villages will be convened soon.
Kirmach said that this is a major breakthrough and soon the pending project of Saraswati river will be completed as work on the 180km stretch has already been completed.
“We are hopeful that the farmers of other villages will also provide their land to complete this project. We will send a proposal to the government for the acquisition of land and after approval from High Powered Purchase Committee,” he added.
On being asked about what the government will pay to the farmers for acquisition, he said that the farmers will be paid three-and-a-half times more than the collector rate of these villages and the government was also ready to offer the same rate for the remaining land.
“Now the acquisition process will start soon and the work of a dam, barrage and a reservoir will be completed and the Saraswati river to flow freely,” he added.
He said that there is no shortage of water and if the Saraswati river flows in the area, the farmers will be benefited.
Since August 2016, the project was hanging in balance as farmers were not ready to give their land even though the district administration had made efforts to acquire it. Due to the delay in the completion of the 67-km stretch of Saraswati canal in all 42 villages of Yamunanagar district, the government had to release water in the canal from Uncha Chandna village from Shahbad-Nalvi branch to recharge the canal artificially.