Bhopal, Feb 19 (IANS) Chief Minister Mohan Yadav on Wednesday said the state government has targeted to increase irrigation area up one crore hectares by 2028-29 from 50 lakh hectares at present.
Yadav noted that the irrigated area in Madhya Pradesh has expanded considerably in the past few years, which needs to be increased further, hence all construction activities must be completed within the set timeframe.
Chief Minister made this statement after chairing a meeting of the Narmada Valley Development Authority (NVDA) at his official residence in Bhopal on Wednesday.
Deputy Chief Minister Jagdish Devda, Chief Secretary Anurag Jain, and other officials were present at the meeting.
During the meeting, the Chief Minister directed officials to complete all undergoing projects associated with NVDA within the time frame to achieve the target of covering an irrigation area of up to one crore hectares, which will help increase production in the state.
The Chief Minister also highlighted that a large number of devotees are expected to visit Omkareshwar during Simhastha 2028, necessitating the construction of ghats on both banks of the Narmada River in Omkareshwar.
The meeting emphasised the construction of ghats on both banks of the Narmada River at Omkareshwar and Navghat-Kheri in Khandwa district, as well as the Indira Sagar Omkareshwar Pump Storage Project.
During the meeting, Chief Minister Yadav also reviewed the progress of construction works on various major projects, including Teria Nala Dam, Saner Dam, the micro irrigation system under the Badadev Joint Micro Irrigation Project, Sondwa Micro Lift Irrigation Project and many others.
Madhya Pradesh’s irrigation area has expanded many folds in previous years and has become the second largest producer of wheat (after Uttar Pradesh) and also a supplier to government procurement agencies (after Punjab).
The state is also the country’s leading producer of soybean, chana (chickpea), tomato, garlic, ginger, dhaniya (coriander) and methi (fenugreek), besides number second in onion (after Maharashtra), mustard (after Rajasthan) and maize (after Karnataka).
The state’s annual agricultural growth has averaged 6.5 per cent, as against the corresponding all-India average of 3.7 per cent.
–IANS
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