RAIPUR: Chhattisgarh BJP government, amid the ongoing offensive against the Maoists in Bastar region, has geared up with the proposal to get two major Rs 49000 crore projects, construction of the Bodhghat multipurpose dam project and interlinking the Indravati & Mahanadi rivers, off the ground.
Both mega projects, which remained stalled for the past 45 years are believed to carry immense potential towards assuring major economic revival of one of the country’s backwards regions, wrecked by the presence of left-wing extremists.
Chief minister Vishnu Deo Sai, during his recent meeting with the Prime Minister Narendra Modi had presented a detailed framework citing immense prospects both carry and need for its inclusion as the national project in the remote area of Bastar division badly affected owing to Maoists.
“To alleviate the persisting issue of lack of irrigation resources and promote an all-round development, the Chhattisgarh government is working on the multipurpose Bodhghat dam project and the interlinking of Indravati & Mahanadi rivers. The project has been lying pending for decades. Besides the extensive economic growth, the two projects will create considerable scope of employment and livelihood in Bastar region”, the CM said.
The project will benefit 269 villages in the districts of Dantewada, Bijapur and Sukma in southern Chhattisgarh.
The Bodhghat dam project is expected to double the pace of development of Bastar besides increasing the scope of irrigation facilities in the division, ensure electricity production of 125 MW, create good scope of livelihood and employment, 4824 ton of fish production, irrigation expansion in 3,78,475 hectares including Kharif and Rabi and availability of drinking water.
The Indravati-Mahanadi interlinking project will provide irrigation facilities to more than 3,00,000 hectares of land including 50,000 hectares of land in Kanker district.
“The rolling out of both projects will be significant towards ensuring faster growth of Bastar making the region self-reliant”, the CM added.
What is the multipurpose Bodhghat Dam Project: The project is proposed on the Indravati River, a major tributary of the Godavari River and flows for a total distance of 264 km in the state.
This project is proposed at a distance of about 8 km from Barsoor village of Geedam tehsil in Dantewada, about 100 km from Jagdalpur town.
The estimated cost of both the projects is Rs 49000 crore, in which the cost of Bodhghat Dam Project is estimated at Rs 29000 crore and Rs 20,000 crore interlinking project.
There are some concerns too regarding the displacement of tribal communities as over 10 thousand hectares of land is feared to get fully submerged and will affect over three dozen villages.
There also is likelihood of large tracts of forest becoming submerged after the project gets implemented. Officials said that clearances would be required for the interlinking project from ministries of environment, tribal welfare besides the central water commission.