BELLARY, FEB 9: Chief Minister J H Patel on Monday said the Government released Rs 100 crore for the modernisation of the Tungabhadra Left Bank Canal which covers 252 km in Koppal and Raichur districts.Addressing mediapersons at the Tungabhadra Dam, near here, before leaving for Alamatti in Bijapur district, Patel said the Tungabhadra Left Bank Canal had so far breached 82 times resulting in heavy loss to crops. Hence the Government decided to modernise it. This will come as a boon to farmers, he added.Patel who was to arrive in Bellary on Sunday changed his programme and halted at Tungabhadra Dam. The Chief Minister, along with Rural Development Minister M P Prakash and Irrigation Minister Nage Gowda, is on a three-day tour of Northern Karnataka districts.Patel said the fund released will be used for modernising Bhadra canal in Shimoga, Davanagere and Chitradurga districts. The modernisation would be done in three phases and would be completed in three years. However, he said, the farmers have to sacrifice one crop for this purpose.Patel said Rs 1 crore had been released to Rail India Technical and Economic Services (RITES) for conducting a survey and recommending suitable site for the construction of balancing reservoir in Bellary and Raichur districts where 8 to 10 TMC of water could be stored. The survey would begin soon, he added.The Chief Minister directed the Chief Engineer of Irrigation Department to prepare estimates for modernisation of Vijayanagar Canal under Tungabhadra before March 31 so that it could be included in Budgetary works.Patel hoped that the Government would complete all the irrigation projects in the Upper Krishna region on schedule.On construction of a parallel canal to the Tungabhadra by using flood waters, Patel said the Andhra Pradesh government had already written a letter to Secretary, Tungabhadra Board, to survey and recommend a parallel canal. Karnataka is studying the proposal carefully before writing to the Tungabhadra Board, he said.The Chief Minister also justified the postponement of Gram Panchayat elections and said the ordinance was necessary to set right anomalies in the earlier Karnataka Panchayat Raj Act 1993. There were some Gram Panchayats whose annual income was less than Rs 30,000 and were unable to pay the salaries to their staff. "We are not afraid of conducting GP elections. But the government is keen on reviewing the lacunae that are destroying the Panchayat Raj system. Once this is over, GP elections would be held on a non-party basis," he said.On the recent announcement of Union Rural Development Minister Baba Gowda Patil that the Centre would not release funds if GP elections are held, Patel quipped that Baba Gowda Patil should do his homework properly. As per the rule, he cannot withheld the grants, the Chief Minister added.
