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Union Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan on Wednesday said that the foundation stone of the Ken-Betwa project, which will be laid by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, will transform the Bundelkhand region and improve the lives of farmers.
"The Ken-Betwa project river linking scheme will change the picture of Bundelkhand and the fate of the farmers. 40 lakh people of Madhya Pradesh and 20 lakh people of Uttar Pradesh would get drinking water and also be able to supply water to their farmers. This will be the biggest irrigation scheme," Chouhan said, speaking to ANI. Chouhan also lashed out at the Congress party, claiming they never worked for Bundelkhand and left its farmers and residents to suffer from drought. "Congress never did any work for Bundelkhand, the people and farmers of Bundelkhand suffering from drought. Now PM Modi will lay the foundation," Chouhan added. On December 24, Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Mohan Yadav stated that the project was a unique example of cooperation and coordination between the central government, Madhya Pradesh, and Uttar Pradesh, and that PM Modi had taken the initiative to realise former Prime Minister Bharat Ratna Late Atal Bihari Vajpayee's dream of a river-linking campaign. According to an official release, the Chief Minister said that the ambitious and multipurpose Ken-Betwa Link Project would transform the Bundelkhand region of both Madhya Pradesh and Uttar Pradesh. Through this project, farmers will have access to ample water for irrigation, and there will be sufficient water for drinking and industrial use. The project will also foster economic and social development in the area, promote tourism, and create new employment opportunities. The groundwater situation in the drought-hit Bundelkhand region will also improve. The Chief Minister added that the Ken-Betwa Link National Project is the largest irrigation project in the country, adopting an underground pressurized pipe irrigation system. The project is being constructed on the Ken River in the Chhatarpur and Panna districts of Madhya Pradesh. As part of the project, a 77-meter-high and 2.13-kilometer-long Daudhan Dam will be built on the Ken River in the Panna Tiger Reserve, along with two tunnels (upper level: 1.9 km, lower level: 1.1 km). The dam will store 2,853 million cubic meters of water. Surplus water from the Ken River will be transferred to the Betwa River through a 221 km-long link canal, providing irrigation and drinking water facilities in both states, the release stated. (ANI)
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