ERODE: Housing and Urban Development Minister S Muthusamy on Sunday said appropriate action in the Lower Bhavani Project (LBP) will be taken after consultation with farmers and government officials.
Speaking to reporters after attending a function to distribute welfare assistance to people in Bharathi Nagar, he said, “There is a difference of opinion among the farmers regarding the modernisation of the LBP canal. The court has given its verdict and I am yet to read the order in full yet. The court’s order will be followed and appropriate action will be taken after consultation with farmers and officials.”
The LBP canal runs for a distance of 200 km through Erode, Tiruppur and Karur districts and a total of 2.07 lakh acres are irrigated through this canal. With the intention to modernise the canal, the state government brought the LBP canal reconstruction project in 2020 and a fund of Rs 709 crore had been allocated. However, the project has been put on hold due to differences in the opinion of farmers.
A group of farmers had filed a case in Madras HC demanding that the works should be executed. The court on Friday directed the government to resume the reconstruction works from May 1. Answering queries about the unsold houses built by the TN Housing Board (TNHB), he said,
“A total of 8,822 houses and plots of the Housing Board are not sold across the state. The main reason for this is that the previous government didn’t study the needs of the people. The house construction project will begin only if there is a public demand.”