PM Modi inaugurates, lays foundation stone for Rs 10,863 crore worth of projects in Karnataka; stresses on water security

“Along with border security, coastal security and internal security, water security concerns should be tackled,” Modi said, noting that the Centre and state governments were taking up several schemes to ensure the same.

Referring to a study, he said that JJM had the potential to save the lives of 1.25 lakh children annually. From three crore houses with tapped water supply, the number has grown to 11 crore households since the implementation of JJM, according to the prime minister.

Taking a dig at previous governments, Modi said the Yadgir district and North Karnataka region was an example of poor policies, “which we can learn from”. He said they declared Yadgir and other districts as backward and washed their hands off them. “They did not even think of developing the region, let alone work towards it. When it was time to invest in water, electricity and other needs, parties encouraged vote bank politics.”

Since all programmes were designed with vote banks of castes, community and religious groups in mind, people lost out, he alleged. “The capability of this region (Kalyana Karnataka) is not less than anyone. Yet, this region was left behind in the growth story (of the country),” Modi said.

Of the four projects worth Rs 10,863 crore, Modi inaugurated the Narayanapura Left Bank Canal extension, renovation and modernisation, carried out at a cost of Rs 4,699 crore, which will benefit 4.5 lakh hectare land and Yadgir multi-village drinking water scheme worth Rs 2,054 crore. He also laid the foundation stone for two packages worth Rs 4,109 crore for the construction of a six-lane greenfield highway from Akkalkot to Kurnool, which is part of the Surat-Chennai economic corridor.

As the highway will pass through several districts of North Karnataka, Modi said it will herald new investments to the region to generate employment for the youth. It will also provide encouragement for self-employment, he added.

Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai said the next 10 years will be declared as an ‘irrigation decade’, during which the state government will focus on irrigation schemes to realise the PM’s vision of ‘more crop per drop’. The state government will set aside more funds to complete all irrigation projects during this decade, the chief minister added.