Gadkari to ensure speedy clearance of projects: CM

With Nitin Gadkari getting additional responsibility of the Union water resources ministry, Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis on Monday voiced hope that irrigation proposals worth Rs 24,000 crore submitted to the Centre by Maharashtra will be speedily cleared.

Speaking over Sunday’s reshuffle of the Union cabinet, Fadnavis noted that Gadkari, who holds the charge of the road transport ministry, sanctioned several highway proposals in Maharashtra, and now he has got additional responsibility of water resources ministry, which is a crucial department for the state.

“The network of national highways in Maharashtra increased from 5,000 km to 20,000 km,” he said.

“The Maharashtra government has already submitted irrigation proposals worth Rs 24,000 crore to the Union ministry. With Gadkari being the minister, I am hopeful of all the projects getting speedy clearances and funds,” he said.

“Under the Pradhan Mantri Krishi Sinchan Yojana, the Centre has sanctioned Rs 26,000 crore-worth works in Maharashtra, possibly the largest allocation under the scheme in the country,” Fadnavis added.

“The biggest reform we are bringing is pipelinebased water supply and doing away with the prevailing open canal system where land acquisition, related litigation, water leakage and challenges of equitable water distribution are the hurdles. Several (irrigation) projects are incomplete because land owners refused to give land for canal construction. By laying pipelines, we minimise the need for land,” he said.

Gadkari has taken care of Maharashtra’s requirements in roads and national highways, “he would do the same when it comes to the water resources,” Fadnavis said. PTI