JAMMU: Minister for Jal Shakti, Javed Ahmad Rana, today informed the House that several measures are being taken up to address the pollution and other environmental concerns affecting the Chenab and Ravi rivers in Jammu region.
The Minister was replying to a question raised by Davinder Kumar Manyal in the Legislative Assembly.
The Minister informed that 11 Decentralized Waste Water Treatment Systems (DEWATS) have been proposed for various districts of Jammu Division through the Rural Development Department to tackle river pollution caused by grey water discharge from the households.
He stated that, of these, 04 works have already been commenced and these systems are specifically designed to effectively mitigate pollution concerns and improve the environmental health of rivers in the region.
The Minister informed that a DPR for “Improvement and Strengthening of Main Ravi Canal and its distribution network” amounting to Rs 571.83 crore has been framed for better management of irrigation and water resources in Ramgarh Constituency, which also includes the canal network of Ramgarh Constituency. The said DPR stands submitted to CWC for appraisal.
He also provided details about the steps being taken for the improvement/rejuvenation of canals (Jammu Chenab) in the Ramgarh Constituency. He informed that the stretch of the D-9 canal from RD 32000 m to 36600 m falls under the territorial jurisdiction of Ramgarh Constituency.
He said that the stretch of 4.50 Km caters to 1259 acres of land for Irrigation and the overall condition of the canal is good, however, the stretch of about 1 Km at spots requires improvement and the same shall be part of the project shelf of UT Capex 2025-26.
The Minister said that the timeline for the project “Improvement of Ravi Canal and its distributaries” shall be two years from the date of sanction of the project. After the implementation of the project, a potential of 8861 Ha shall be increased in Ramgarh Constituency. Further, other improvement works are being executed under UT Capex Budget as per availability of funds, he added.
