Jujumura’s water conservation project grabs PM Narendra Modi’s attention
Narendra Modi
SAMBALPUR: The innovation of stream-water harvesting in Jujumura block in the district has found mention in Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s Mann Ki Baat twitter handle (@mannkibaat). The project has been implemented on the Kuturlatia water stream in Jujumura block’s Kayakud village.
“The Jujumura block in Sambalpur, Odisha, harvests stream water for irrigation,” The PM tweeted through Mann Ki Baat Updates. This project was carried out under MGNREGS during 2020-21 financial year. Earlier, the perennial water source was being used by people for their daily needs and the excess water went waste due to lack of conservation measures. However, with the implementation of the project, the stream water has been channelized to a huge tank now and the farmers are using the water for irrigation purposes. Around 50 hectares of land will get irrigation facility from the tank water. Since the project was undertaken under MGNREGS, it also provided livelihood to labourers during the Covid crisis.
Block development officer (BDO), Jujumura, Suraj Biswal said, “We first constructed a diversion weir at an estimated cost of Rs 7 lakh to check the water of the Kuturlatia stream. Later, to channelise the water of the stream to the tank, which is around 2 kilometrers away from the diversion weir, we developed a canal system, including earthen and concrete drains, at an estimated cost of around Rs 14 lakh. The water from the stream is now flowing to the tank through the canal system. The huge tank is now being used as a reservoir. People have already started using water from the reservoir for irrigation. Work on the project began in the month of March.”