The Asian Development Bank (ADB) has inked a pact with the Centre to provide a loan worth $31 million for sustainable water resource management in river basins in Karnataka.
“The deal will boost water availability in selected river basins in Karnataka through implementation of integrated water resources management and improve water efficiency in irrigation,” said ADB in a release.
The loan is the first tranche of the $150 million Karnataka Integrated and Sustainable Water Resources Management Investment Programme approved by the multilateral funding agency in 2014. The programme will improve irrigation efficiency in three river basins in the State, saving 1,700 million cubic meters of water that could be used on an additional 1,60,000 hectares of farmland, the release added. The ADB said this could increase farm incomes by about 50 per cent and benefit about 1.5 million people.
“The first tranche loan will help modernise the Gondi irrigation system. Besides, the loan will help train and certify over 200 Water Resources Department staff in integrated water resources management and build capacities of Water Users’ Cooperative Societies,” said M. Teresa Kho, country director for ADB in India.
The second part of the project will target Vijaynagara and the Tungabhadra left Bank Canal.The load period is 25 years, including a grace period of 5 years. The first tranche of the loan would be implemented over four years from 2014 to 2018, ADB said.
First tranche of
the loan to help modernise the Gondi irrigation system
