Irrigation in 35,260 hectares of crop land has been affected as 534 minor irrigation projects have either become defunct or suffered partial damage, admitted the Odisha government.
To a query on minor irrigation projects, Water Resource Secretary Raghunandan Das said that the State has total 3,822 minor irrigation projects in 29 districts and 5,54,090 hectares of irrigation potential was created through these projects.
“At present, minor irrigation projects cover 4.77 lakh ha of area in the State. As many as 141 projects are completely defunct and 393 minor irrigation projects are partially damaged. Irrigation has been affected in 35,260 ha of crop land,” said Mr. Das. The State government required ₹176.30 crore to make these projects functional again, he said.
Of the 35,260 hectares of the affected area, 10,152 hectares fall in Ganjam, Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik’s home district. Here, 21 minor projects are completely damaged and 191 partially damaged.
