Revival of Ujh multi-purpose project to benefit J&K, Punjab, curb infiltration: Dr Jitendra
Jammu, Sep 18: Union Minister of State in PMO Dr Jitendra Singh on Thursday asserted that the revival of the Ujh multi-purpose project would benefit Punjab and Jammu and Kashmir in multiple ways.
The project was first proposed nearly 100 years ago, he recalled.
The Union Minister said that after its completion, the Ujh project would enhance utilisation of waters of eastern rivers, i.e., Ravi, Beas and Sutlej, allotted to India as per the Indus Water Treaty to address chronic water shortages and help curb cross-border infiltration.
He said this would facilitate irrigation of nearly 90,000 hectares of agricultural land in Gurdaspur and Pathankot in Punjab and Samba and Kathua in Jammu and Kashmir.
Talking to local residents and media persons during his visit to the flood-hit villages in the Sujanpur area on day 2 of his tour of the affected places in Punjab, Dr Jitendra disclosed that the Ministries of Defence and Home Affairs had also intervened in the matter from the security point of view.
“The inter-ministerial arrangement between the Ministries of Home and Water Resources is aimed at pushing forward the proposal for construction of the dam on Ujh forward without further delay,” he added.
The Union Minister said presently, the uncontrolled flow of water was causing damage to farmland and BSF establishments during natural disasters like the recent spate of floods in Punjab.
At the same time, it was also providing vulnerable entry points for cross-border infiltration, he added.
Dr Jitendra recalled that the work on the Shahpur Kandi dam, located on the Ravi River, had also been held up for several decades, and it was revived by this government only after the intervention by Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
During his tour of the flood-affected areas of Pathankot today, the Union Minister visited Kailashpur, Pangoli and other villages in Sujanpur and met the victims.
Speaking on the occasion, the minister directed the accompanying authorities to undertake immediate measures for rehabilitation of the affected and build new structures with better qualities to withstand floods in the future.
While interacting with the victims, Dr Jitendra assured that compensation would be provided for damages suffered by their houses and shops.
Yesterday, the Union Minister visited several villages affected by the floods, such as Polla, Kohlian and the riverbedof Ravi. Besides, he also visited places along the rivers Ravi and Jlali in Bamial, Chal, Amir, Simbal Sakol, Dhinda and Bhupalpur. On the occasion, he was briefed on the level of damage suffered during the calamity.
Dr Jitendra said that Prime Minister Narendra Modi was monitoring the rehabilitation of the victims and reconstruction work with respect to the damaged infrastructure.
The minister said he was also monitoring the work being undertaken in all 23 districts of Punjab and receiving reports from the local authorities on a daily basis.
