Vijay Kumar Choudhary

Patna, Nov. 28: The state government has strongly protested the move of the Union water resources ministry to slash central assistance in irrigation and flood-control projects.

It has accused the Centre of shirking from its responsibility and has pointed to the enormous financial burden the new guidelines of the Centre will have on states like Bihar.

State water resources minister Vijay Kumar Choudhary, in a letter to Union minister for water resources Harish Rawat today, has asked him to revert to the old formula, according to which the state had to shell out 10 per cent for irrigation projects while the rest was financed by the Centre.

The Centre, in its fresh guidelines for the Accelerated Irrigation Benefits Programme (AIBP), has maintained that the state will have to cough up 50 per cent of the irrigation project cost and also meet 50 per cent of the work before it “considers” taking up the project under the scheme and sanctions its share of the cost. The guidelines have been issued for the 12th five-year plan.

Choudhary said Bihar would lose over Rs 918 crore during the current five-year plan due to the new guidelines.

He pointed out that due to the fresh guidelines, several major irrigation projects such as the East Gandak Canal project phase–II, West Gandak Canal project and Uderasthan Barrage project could not be included in the AIBP as these required huge funds. The Bihar minister said that according to the new guidelines, the state would have to find over Rs 2,000 crore from its own resources, which is bound to affect other projects.

The minister has also taken strong exception to the Centre curbing central assistance in flood protection projects from 90 per cent to 75 per cent. In his letter to the Union minister, Choudhary has pointed out that 28 of Bihar’s 38 districts are flood prone, though the Centre recognises only 15 districts affected.

Choudhary said the fresh rules would make a poor state like Bihar dig into its own resources for flood protection programmes.

Choudhary, in his letter to Rawat, has also opposed the ceiling of Rs 40 crore for taking up new flood control projects. He pointed out that a state like Bihar faces numerous challenges from rivers entering from Nepal and the restriction would affect flood control measures.

Choudhary pointed out that the Centre was shirking its responsibility and imposing a heavy burden on the states. He demanded amendment of the guidelines so that it continues its financial assistance to the previous level of the 11th five-year plan.

Speaking to The Telegraph, the minister said the immediate loss for Bihar due to the fresh guidelines would be over Rs 300 crore.