Nitish inaugurates Ganga water supply project for southern Bihar
Bihar chief minister Nitish Kumar on Sunday inaugurated a scheme in Nalanda district, under which, flood waters will be treated for supply to households in the southern parts of the state.
After the inauguration of the Ganga Water Supply Scheme (GWSS) in Rajgir, he said the project has been developed keeping in view the requirements in the four towns of southern Bihar region for the next 50 years.
A total of 135 litres per person will be provided through the project, he added.
“It should be enough. Seeing the impact of this project, I will also plan something on similar
lines for Patna also, which is situated on the banks of the Ganga. In a few months, Ganga water will also reach Nawada. All the four South Bihar towns will use Ganga water during the flood season and store it to tackle drinking water woes in the region,” he added.
He said that the project had been envisaged as part of the “Jal-jeevan-hariyali” project in 2020 in view of the water woes in the region.
“This project will also help in ground water recharge for agriculture .... ” he added.
The state’s water resources minister, Sanjay Kumar Jha, said that floodwaters will be lifted through pumps at Hathidah and transported through a 151-kilometre pipeline to three enormous reservoirs in Rajgir, Tetar, and Gaya. From there the water will travel to two treatment plants, where it is treated and transported to the cities.
“Three South Bihar cities of Rajgir, Gaya, and Bodh Gaya are experiencing water shortage due to excessive groundwater extraction...” he said.