Minister for Energy, Water Resources and Irrigation Barsha Man Pun has said the government had placed the Sunkoshi-Kamala-Marin Diversion Project on its priority list and it would be implemented soon.

The federal government wanted to develop this project as it has the potentiality of making the mountain, hill and Tarai districts prosperous, Minister Pun said during a discussion with Province 2 Chief Minister Lalbabu Raut on speeding up the project, according to his secretariat.

 “The Sunkoshi Kamala Diversion Project is high on the ministry’s priority list. The detailed project report would also be prepared shortly and the government would start the contract process immediately after that. The project would contribute much to the development of Province 2,” the minister said.

Locals of Province 2 have long been calling on the government to expedite construction of the project so that water diverted from Sunkoshi River to Kamala River could be used to irrigate additional plots of land. Early completion of the project, locals said, would provide year-round irrigation facility in Saptari, Siraha, Dhanusha and Mahottari districts.

The water, according to experts, could be diverted to Kamala River through a 22-km tunnel via Khurkot and Katari. If the water is diverted, Kamala Irrigation Project, which is currently providing irrigation facility in Siraha and Dhanusha districts, could be used to irrigate agricultural land in Saptari and Mahottari districts as well.

Kamala Irrigation Project was inaugurated in 1962 by then Irrigation Minister Ganesh Man Singh. Since then, the project has been providing irrigation facility in 25,000 hectares of land in western Siraha and eastern Dhanusha during summer. In winter, the irrigation project provides water to about 8,500 hectares of agricultural land in western Siraha and eastern Dhanusha.

Pun said the government was working on the project with special action plan this time around, adding that the Province 2 government has an important role to play in facilitating it.

On the occasion, calling on the federal government to accord top priority to the Sunkoshi-Kamala Diversion Project, Raut also drew Minister Pun’s attention towards employees management and the projects being undertaken by the federal ministry.

During the meeting, Raut also shared that the Province 2 government has made necessary preparations for the visit of Chief Minister of India’s Uttar Pradesh Yogi Adityanath. The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader is scheduled to visit Janakpur on the occasion of the Bibaha Panchami celebration.

(With inputs from Rastriya Samachar Samiti)