NEW DELHI, Feb 1 ? Faced with unflattering strictures, Ministry of Water Resources (MoWR) has laid the blame for delay in execution of the multi-purpose Pagladiya Dam Project at Assam Government?s doorstep, even as it was directed to work out a time-schedule and ensure strict monitoring of the project implementation.
The long-pending project initially estimated to cost Rs 542.90 crore was cleared in 2001 hit a major roadblock in the form of problems over land acquisition and relief and rehabilitation of displaced people. The MoWR has held that delay in handing over the land and security-related issues have led to slow progress of the Project.
The slow progress of the project have provoked the Parliamentary Standing Committee attached to MoWR to recommend that the Ministry should put in place a time schedule for completion of each activity precisely, and strictly monitor them for timely completion. Union Minister of State for Water Resources, Bijoya Chakravarty and Chief Minister Tarun Gogoi have on more than one occasion locked horns over implementation of the Project each blaming the other for the delay.
The Union Minister?s charges that delay was mainly owing to failure of the State Government to hand over the land for the Project has been rebutted by the State Government, which maintains that problems lay elsewhere. As the war of words between the MoWR and State Government continued, the project cost has doubled. It has since escalated to Rs 1,136 crore.
Meanwhile, in its formal reply to the Parliamentary panel, the Ministry said land acquisition notification for over 72 percent of required land for the reservoir submergence including the land required for construction of dam has been issued. For resettlement and rehabilitation about 30 per cent required land has been taken over by Brahmaputra Board, which is executing the Project. The rehabilitation activities are to be completed in phases by March 2005, well in advance before completion of the Dam by March 2008.
The MoWR, nevertheless, assured that the Board has prepared the construction schedule for each activity for timely completion. A Board level Project Implementation Authority along with a project level monitoring committee has been set up to review progress of implementation periodically. The draft Public Investment Board (PIB) memo submitted by Brahmaputra Board last May with a revised cost estimate is still pending clearance. Currently, the revised estimate is under technical examination of the Central Water Commission (CWC).
All modalities for implementation of the ambitious river inter-linking project is expected to be completed by 2016, the Parliamentary Committee was told by the Ministry. Meanwhile, the Task Force on Interlinking of Rivers has been further strengthened by including nine more experts, drawn from various disciplines. The Action Plan ?I report detailing the time schedule for completion of the feasibility studies, detailed project report (DPR), estimated cost, among others was submitted last April by the Task Force headed by Suresh Prabhu.
The DPR is likely to be ready by December 2006. The MoWR has however, refrained from estimating the cost of the project maintaining that it would be available only after submission of the DPR. The Task Force has considered the consensus expressed in various quarters about shortage of funds for the ongoing water sector schemes and rain-water harvesting schemes. It is of the opinion that the Interlinking Project should promote and if possible, include costs of such programme in order to meet with justified concerns. The quantum of the required funding would be worked out and included in Action Plan-II.
As for the implementation schedule, the Ministry has revealed that a group of the Task Force would examine the two schedule with 10 years as a milestone as spelt by the Government of India. The other schedule is of 40 years which was indicated by the Government in its counter-affidavit submitted before the Supreme Court.
The National Water Development Agency (NWDA) has identified 30 links in all, 14 in Himalayan component and 16 in the Peninsular component of the National Perspective Plan (NPP). The Agency is ready with the feasibility reports for eight links. The work for preparation of feasibility report is going on for 16 links while report for remaining six links is yet to start.
The Parliamentary panel was informed that feasibility report for all the 22 links was planned for completion by December 2005. Out of these, reports for 12 links were to be completed this year and for 10 other links, next year. ?Critical review of all link proposals by the Task Force is in progress. Alternative proposals, as a result of such review for Peninsular links are being examined by the Ministry.
Significantly, the Parliamentary panel has recommended that Government should accord top priority to small links, which could be easily implemented. In this connection, it made special reference to Ken-Betwa link involving Madhya Pradesh and Uttar Pradesh.
The interlinking project envisages to increase gross irrigation potential from 140 million hectares to 174 mha, and add 34,000 MW hydropower. Other avenues such as drought proofing, navigation, employment generation, among others are to be quantified.