Fadnavis orders faster work on Marathwada Water Grid; first phase to cover four districts

Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis has directed that work on the Marathwada Water Grid project be speeded up. He said the project is extremely important for finding a permanent solution to Marathwada's water shortage and for freeing the region from drought. At a meeting in Mumbai on the 6th, he said the preliminary project report should be uploaded immediately and that the process of sending it to the Department of Economic Affairs of the Union government should be completed quickly.

The high-level meeting was held with a senior JICA delegation at Varsha, the Chief Minister's official residence in Mumbai. It reviewed the Water Grid blueprint along with several infrastructure projects under way with Maharashtra-Japan cooperation. The Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) is to provide financial assistance of about Rs 20,000 crore for the project.

Water is not distributed evenly across Marathwada. The main aim of the Water Grid is therefore to carry water through closed pipelines from dams that hold more water to dams in drought-prone areas. A two-way flow system will be set up for this.

The first phase covers four districts: Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar, Beed, Latur and Dharashiv. The Jayakwadi, Majalgaon, Manjra, Ujani, Lower Terna and Lower Manar dams will be linked. About 3,095 km of main and secondary pipelines will be laid and 15 water treatment plants will be built. About one crore people will benefit directly from the project.

The estimated cost of the Water Grid project for all eight districts is about Rs 25,056 crore. JICA has shown a positive attitude towards lending about Rs 20,000 crore for the first phase.

Latur and Dharashiv lie in an earthquake-prone zone, so Japan's advanced earthquake-resistant technology will be used in construction. This will include ductile iron pipes, modern pumping systems and a SCADA system. The project will also help industries in Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar's Auric City, Shendra-Bidkin and Waluj industrial areas get a sustainable water supply.

The animation, visual effects, gaming and comics (AVGC) sector was also discussed at the meeting. Initiatives are under way with Japanese companies and the Indian Institute of Creative Technologies (IICT) to take Maharashtra to the forefront of this sector worldwide. As part of this, a "Manga Caravan" will be held in Mumbai in February, which Chief Minister Fadnavis welcomed.

The process of appointing a project management consultant for the Water Grid and preparing the detailed project report (DPR) will be completed soon with JICA's cooperation. The project has been planned so that the actual work is completed by 2029.

Chief Minister Fadnavis assured that the state government will further strengthen cooperation with Japan on projects relating to water, transport, the environment and modern technology, and that all the projects will be given every necessary support by the government.

Water Supply and Sanitation Minister Gulabrao Patil, Minister of State Meghna Sakore-Bordikar, the Chief Minister's Chief Economic Adviser Praveensingh Pardeshi, Additional Chief Secretary of the Water Supply and Sanitation Department Parag Jain Nainutia, Additional Chief Secretary of the Finance Department Vikas Chandra Rastogi, Maharashtra Jeevan Pradhikaran Member Secretary Amgothu Naik and MITRA department head Dr Sanjay Belsare were present. Several senior officials were also at the meeting, including Hitomi Sato, Consul General of Japan in India, Consul Kenji Takagi, and Takuro Takeuchi, chief representative of the JICA India office.