Gujarat govt completes SAUNI Yojana, will benefit 98,000 people

Gandhinagar : Gujarat government has completed the construction of Package 8 and Package 9 of Link-3 under the SAUNI (Saurashtra Narmada Avtaran Irrigation) Yojana.

The project will be inaugurated by Prime Minister Narendra Modi during his visit on July 27.

The completion of Packages 8 and 9 will bring water to 52,398 acres of cultivable land in 95 villages and provide potable water to over 98,000 residents in the Saurashtra region.

Package-8 includes a 2.5-meter diameter M.S. pipeline stretching 32.56 km up to Bhadar-1 and Veri Dam, with a cost of Rs 256 crores. This will provide irrigation water to more than 42,380 acres of land and potable water to over 75,000 people from the Narmada River in 57 villages.

Package-9 consists of a 2.5-meter diameter M.S. pipeline covering 36.50 km up to Aji-1 Dam and Fofal-1, with a cost of Rs 129 crores. This will bring Narmada water for irrigation to more than 10,018 acres of land and supply drinking water to 23,000 people in 38 villages.

Chief Minister Bhupendra Patel said that it has been a crucial initiative in Gujarat, with 1203 km of pipelines laid in the last 7 years.

The project has made available an estimated 71,206 million cubic feet of water, benefiting 95 reservoirs, 146 ponds, and 927 check dams, ultimately enhancing irrigation facilities for approximately 6.50 lakh acres and providing potable water to 80 lakh people.

The SAUNI Yojana is a lifeline for the drought-prone Saurashtra region, aiming to store an additional 1 million acre-feet of water from the Narmada River in 115 existing reservoirs across 11 districts.

Once completed, it will benefit more than 970 villages with irrigation water, covering 8,24,872 acres of land, and provide drinking water to 82 lakh people.

The project has already achieved 95% completion at an expenditure of Rs 18,563 crore.