BANKE: The work progress of the national pride project, Sikta Irrigation Project, has yet to gather momentum.
Around 60 percent of the project has been completed so far since the start of the construction some 14 years back.
Sikta Irrigation Project is the country’s largest irrigation project being constructed by the government with its own resources at an estimated cost of Rs 25 billion.
Project Chief Krishna Prasad Nepal informed that 60 percent of works have been completed so far.
The target is to complete the remaining works within the fiscal year 2019/20, he said.
According to him, the project will irrigate around 42,000 hectares of land in Banke district through its 45.25-kilometers-long western main canal and 53-kilometer-long eastern main canal.
In Banke district, paddy is cultivated on 35,970 hectares land, and currently, around 13,700 (25 percent) of total cultivable land has irrigation facilities.
Minister for Energy, Water Resources and Irrigation, Barsha Man Pun has instructed the project authorities to expedite the works.
The construction of the subsidiary canals and branch canals is very slow.
Eighteen sluice gates which were constructed on the main canal at Agaiya around three years back are yet to be brought into operation.
According to Shalik Ram Dangi, Pof the Main Consumer Committee, farmers have been facing problems as the project works have yet to be completed.
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