Chief Minister Siddaramaiah on Thursday admitted that it would not be possible to implement all the irrigation projects coming under the third phase of the Upper Krishna Project (UKP III) in this tenure of the government because of the exponential demand for funds. He urged the people of the State to give a complete mandate to the Congress in the upcoming Assembly polls in order to get the projects completed.
Addressing a large gathering after inaugurating the tank filling project of the historic Begum Talab here, the CM said that before the Union government announced new land acquisition policy, the total project cost was estimated at Rs. 17,000 core. “But post-2013, the cost has multiplied. Now, just to implement the project we need over Rs. 50,000 crore, while another Rs. 30,000 crore is needed for relief and rehabilitation works in villages that will be affected by the projects,” he said.
Mr. Siddaramaiah said that since it was not possible for the government to spend so much money in remaining one-and-a-half years or so, he urged voters to keep the Congress in power so that the party can see through the implementation of all the projects.
Asserting that his government has given emphasis to filling up of tanks and drip irrigation for improving the groundwater level, he promised to fill up all the 184 tanks in Vijayapura district by December next year.
Later in the day, participating in the silver jubilee celebration at Agriculture College, which comes under the University of Agricultural Sciences, Dharwad, the Chief Minister urged the university to effectively implement the concept of ‘lab to land’.
He said that if the outcome of research is not taken to the fields, the whole exercise of establishing universities and research centres would be futile. “The main challenge confronting research centres is developing technology that could ensure higher revenue within limited resources such as land and water, which are shrinking rapidly owing to urbanisation and climate change,” he said.
Mr. Siddaramaiah called upon farmers to adopt the concept of integrated farming for higher earning by engaging in supplementary activities such as dairy farming and horticulture.
The CM also expressed happiness after being informed that more than 50 per cent of those admitted to Agriculture College are girls.
Water Resources Minister M. B. Patil, University of Agricultural Sciences Vice-Chancellor D. P. Biradar and other Congress MLAs were present on the occasion.
