KEONJHAR: Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi on Saturday announced a series of development projects, including laying foundation stones for three mega lift irrigation projects worth around `120 crore in Keonjhar and Mayurbhanj districts.
The projects at Raikala, Satikudar and Jarakani are targeted for completion by 2028 and will provide irrigation to 4,280 hectares of agricultural land.
He also set the ground for a Rs 24-crore sports complex and a `30-crore residential school for Scheduled Caste and Scheduled Tribe students in Keonjhar.
Addressing a public meeting at Raikala, the chief minister said the projects would help farmers move beyond a single-crop pattern and harvest two to three crops annually. The projects will benefit several villages in Jhumpura and Keonjhar blocks, besides the Jarakani area of Mayurbhanj district.
“A prosperous farmer means a prosperous Odisha. Unless farmers get water for their fields, the rural economy cannot become strong. These projects are not merely connections of water pipelines but a revolutionary step towards making our dry lands productive,” he said.
Majhi announced that the much-awaited Kanupur irrigation project in Keonjhar would be formally inaugurated in December. He said the government had set a target of providing irrigation facilities to an additional 15 lakh hectares over the next five years.
Pointing out that Rs 14,500 crore had been allocated for irrigation projects in the current Budget, he said the government had completed six inter-basin reservoir projects and RCC lining of 1,941 km of field channels, benefiting around 80,000 hectares of command area. Besides, 656 new check dams had been constructed and 1,022 existing ones renovated.
Majhi also inaugurated the Jhumpura community health centre, constructed at a cost of `17.97 crore, and a new State Bank of India branch at his native village Raikala to improve healthcare and banking services in the region.
Highlighting the government’s commitment to the development of his native village, Majhi said 10 grassroots projects worth `8.20 crore had been taken up in Raikala. These include a mini stadium at Karanjiapada, additional classrooms at an upper primary school, improvement of the Dhabaleswar temple premises, a rural market, a youth club, a community centre and road construction.
Keonjhar MP Ananta Nayak, Patna MLA Akhila Chandra Naik, Telkoi MLA Fakir Mohan Naik and Keonjhar Special Development Council chairperson Mamita Naik were among those present.