Gadkari praises KCR on Mission Kakatiya: Harish

Union Minister for Water Resources Nitin Gadkari today praised the flagship programs of Telangana like Mission Bhagiratha and Mission Kakatiya.

Nitin Gadkari chaired a meeting of Water Resources Board in Delhi attended by Irrigation and water resources ministers of States, including Telangana Irrigation Minister T Harish Rao and Special Chief Secretary S K Joshi. The Union Minister was all praise for the lakes revival scheme and safe drinking waters scheme being launched by the Telangana Government. These two schemes — Mission Bhagiratha and Mission Kakatiya — started by Chief Minister K Chandrasekhar Rao are good to be followed, Gadkari said. The Union Minister also noted that some other States were evincing interest to replicate the water scheme and lakes revival scheme in the larger public interest, Harish Rao said.

The Union minister discussed at length on the need for linking up rivers and measures to be taken and development of water resources across the country. Immediate steps are needed to ensure that floods are prevented from ravaging the States and timely release of waters for irrigation and further check drought affect. He said to have asked the riparian States to protect the interests of others and avoid fights in sharing rightful share of waters by neighbouring States.

The ministers, who turned up from other States, gave their version on the linkage of rivers as it will give positive results in the long run to cater to irrigation needs and check the drought problem and prevent floods, according to information. Harish Rao appealed to Gadkari to focus on the linkage of rivers within each State as it will boost irrigation and check the problems in addition the rivers linkage between the two or three States. He said Gadkari had informed the meeting that the expenditure of rivers linkage will be borne by the Centre and States with 90 and 10 per cent respectively. (NSS)