STATE TIMES NEWS
JAMMU: Minister for PHE, Irrigation and Flood Control Sham Lal Choudhary on Monday said out of the approved outlay of Rs 12.32 crore under district plan, Rs 10.03 crore have been released to Hydraulic Division Kishtwar during current fiscal for execution of various schemes under PHE and Irrigation sectors.
He further said Rs 8.46 crore have been released for execution of various works under PHE sector, while as Rs 1.56 crore has been released under Irrigation sector in the district during current financial year.
The Minister was replying to a question raised by Sajjad Ahmad Kichloo in the Legislative Council.
He said 117 different works have been taken up in the district under these sectors out of which eight works have been allotted to contractors and three have been tendered while the remaining works were taken up by the department itself.
The Minister said 92 workers have been engaged in Kishtwar district in lieu of land donated by them to the PHE department during 2013-14 and 2014-15. The wages have been paid to them from February 2014 to May, 2014 adding that no worker of any other category has been engaged except land donors in the department, he added.
He said the state government, in its next Budget, has assured regularisation, on contractual basis, of all those persons who have given their land to the state government on the promise of a government job and have been left out so far, has been already announced. He said they will have to go through a process of documentation and verification which will be done by the General Administration Department.
Meanwhile, the Minister further informed in the Upper House, that two Lift Irrigation Schemes (LIS) of Khudpora and Hapatkhut, Waopzan are nearing completion and these would be commissioned within six months. The Minister said this while replying to a Calling Attention Notice by Dr Bashir Ahmad Shah Veeri.
“These Lift Irrigation Schemes (LIS) were targeted for completion during 2015-16, but due to inadequate funding under central assistance, the schemes could not be completed in the stipulated time” he said.
Giving details, the Minister said that both schemes were approved under AIBP in 12th Technical Advisory Committee at an estimated cost of Rs 2.17 crore and Rs 2.06 crore, with a potential of reaching out to 147 and 145 hectares respectively.
