Yogi reviews preparations for Saryu canal project inauguration by PM Modi

Chief minister Yogi Adityanath on Thursday visited Balrampur, Bahraich and Shravasti districts of Uttar Pradesh to review preparations for the inauguration of the Saryu Canal National Project by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on December 11.

The Saryu Canal National Project will irrigate about 15 lakh hectare land in 6,227 villages, the chief minister said in a series of tweets before visiting the three districts.

The government has spent ₹ 10,000 crore on the canal project. Dedicated to agriculture and uplift of the farmers, the project will set new standards of development, Yogi Adityanath said.

The Saryu Canal National Project was pending for more than four decades. The Prime Minister will dedicate the much-awaited project to the nation on December 11 and it will benefit about 30 lakh farmers of nine districts, paving the way for all- round development of the state, Yogi Adityanath said.

The chief minister inspected the programme site at Balrampur on Thursday. He held a review meeting with officials and people’s representatives and gave instructions about the arrangements for the PM’s programme.

Later, at a press conference in Bahraich, the chief minister said the Saryu Canal National Project starts from the Saryu Barrage and will benefit the farmers of Bahraich, Shravasti, Gonda, Balrampur, Siddharthnagar, Basti, Sant Kabirnagar, Gorakhpur and Maharajganj districts. The Saryu canal project was planned in 1972 and work on it started in 1978. Initially, the project was limited to three districts of the Devipatan division but was expanded to nine districts in 1982, he said.

Only 52% of the work on this entire project could be completed in about 40 years from 1978 to 2017, he said. After the BJP government came to power in UP, the remaining 48% of the project was completed between 2017 and 2021, Yogi Adityanath added.

The 6623-km canal system has been made in the nine districts by connecting the Ghaghra with the Saryu, Rapti, Banganga and the Rohini rivers.

This project is the best example of the river linking campaign, Yogi Adityanath said.

From 2015 onwards, the central government made funds available to the state government through the Pradhan Mantri Krishi Sinchai Yojana to develop better irrigation facilities, the chief minister said. The BJP government in UP took full advantage of the scheme to develop a network of canals, he said. The Saryu Canal National Project has now been completed with the help of the Central government. The income of the farmers of this area will increase manifold, he said.

After assuming office in 2014, Prime Minister Narendra Modi had pledged to double farmers’ income by the year 2022 and this project is very important from the point of view of fulfilling that resolution, he said.