Haryana to pursue water issue at all levels (The Hindu 24 February 2012)

State is not getting its due share, says Governor
Haryana Governor Jagannath Pahadia delivering the customary address on the first day of the Budget session of the Vidhan Sabha in Chandigarh on Thursday.Photo: Akhilesh Kumar
Haryana Governor Jagannath Pahadia on Thursday expressed concern over the issue of the State's legitimate share of water.
Describing Haryana as a water-deficit State, he said the situation had been further compounded as it was not getting its due share of river water.
Delivering the customary address on the first day of the Budget session of the Haryana Vidhan Sabha here, he asserted that the State Government was committed to securing its “legitimate share of water by pursuing the matter at all levels”.
The focus was on efficient use of water through improved agriculture practices and use of technological interventions. It was proposed to line the sides of Western Yamuna Canal (Main Line Lower) and Western Yamuna Canal, Main Branch from Dadupur to Karnal, he added.
The project to repair, restore and renovate the Bibipur Lake in Kurukshetra district has been submitted to the Union Ministry of Water Resources and the State Government is actively pursuing the construction of up-stream storages on the Yamuna.
The Detailed Project Report of Mewat Feeder Canal for providing irrigation and drinking water facilities would be submitted to the NCR Planning Board for funding after its approval by the Central Water Commission.
Stating that agriculture was the foremost priority of the Government, he said that foodgrain production had reached 166.29 lakh tonnes during 2010-11 and Haryana was the second largest contributor to the national food basket.
New fish markets would be set up in Bahadurgarh and Gurgaon to strengthen the post-harvest infrastructure.
He further said that climate change concerns had added a new dimension to the energy sector. A nuclear power plant was being set up at village Gorakhpur in district Fatehabad for which land acquisition proceedings were on. The power generation projects are progressing well and the third unit of the Indira Gandhi Super Thermal Power Project at Jhajjar is expected to be commissioned by March. And the second unit of the Mahatma Gandhi Super Thermal Power Project is expected to be commissioned by July.
So far as industrialisation was concerned, the rate of implementation of the pledged investment in Haryana is the highest in the country. An investment of Rs.59,000 crore has been catalysed in the State since 2005 while investment of about Rs.96,000 crore is in the pipeline. The State has so far received foreign direct investment of Rs.13,128 crore while the total exports have increased from Rs.43,679 crore during 2009-10 to Rs.48,530 crore in 2010-11. A dialogue is on with NASSCOM for widening the base of IT industry by integrating IMT Manesar as an extension of Gurgaon, opening new areas as potential IT destinations within the National Capital Region and elsewhere in the State.
The Government is committed to improving and upgrading health services, he said, adding that the declining sex ratio and the status of girl child is an area of concern.
A total of six private universities have already been established and many more are in the pipeline. The State economy, the Governor added, has achieved a growth rate of 9.6 per cent in Gross State Domestic Product during 2010-11.Also, as per the advance estimates for the 2011-12, the per capita income is expected to be Rs. 1,09,227 at current prices.