India
Rajasthan’s Indira Gandhi canal to be closed for 70 days
Indira Gandhi Canal, considered the lifeline of Rajasthan, will remain closed for two and a half months due to the repair work. Sowing of crops in about 15 lakh acres of agricultural land is expected to be affected due to the closure of Indira Gandhi Canal, which supplies water in 10 districts of the state. The canal will be closed from 25 March till 5 June. During canal closure, no water will be provided for irrigation from the canal. This will create a big crisis in the districts located in western Rajasthan. Officials of the Water Resources Department say that there will be no problem of drinking water. Drinking water will be released from the canal. Fearing sowing of 15 lakh acres of canal closure, some public representatives of the area have demanded to reduce the time period.
There will be relining in Rajasthan and Punjab
Vinod Mittal, Chief Engineer, Water Resources Department, Hanumangarh, informed that the canal closure dates are being finalized. From March 25, a 70-day detention is proposed and is almost certain. Mittal said that the first 40 days of this, water will flow into the canal to meet the drinking water needs of the districts connected with it. After that 30 days the canal will be completely closed. He told that earlier in the canal, there has been detention in the past too, but this time it is being held for 70 days simultaneously. During the closure of the canal, there will be work to repair the Indira Gandhi canal.
During this time the relining work of 42 km canal in Rajasthan and 30 km in Punjab is to be done. Meanwhile, BJP MLA Santosh Bawri from Anupgarh took up the matter in the Legislative Assembly this week and asked the government to reconsider the decision of the detainee to be 40 days instead of 70. The Department of Water has a maximum storage capacity of 30 days.
The canal was closed earlier for 29 days in the year 2018-19 and for 35 days in the year 2017-18 for relining the canal. According to farmer leaders, for the first time in April and May, the kharif sowing may be affected.
