NEW DELHI: In a determined effort to alleviate drought in the Marathwada region, Eknath Shinde, the Chief Minister of Maharashtra, on Saturday called upon the Central government to expedite the Marathwada Water Grid project, aimed at linking rivers in the state. Stating that our prime objective is to supply water to the parched Marathwada region and implement the river interlinking project in the state so as to make water reach the entire state and make it ‘Sujlam Sufalam’ (prosperous), Chief Minister Eknath Shinde demanded the union government to accelerate the river interlinking project. 

Speaking during the meeting of the Governing Council of Niti Aayog at the Ashok Mandap in Rashtrapati Bhavan, CM highlighted the abundant rainfall received by the Konkan region and emphasized the need to utilize it efficiently. He also stressed the importance of increasing irrigation in the Konkan area, as a significant amount of water from Sangli, Kolhapur, and the Konkan region flows into the sea annually due to the absence of river linking and irrigation projects.

To address this issue, the chief minister expressed the government's intention to tap into the water resources of the Godavari basin in the Marathwada region, seeking the Center's assistance in expediting river-linking projects in the state. The Chief Minister further announced the implementation of a project worth Rs 14.40 crore to divert 22.9000 million cubic feet of water from west-flowing rivers to the Godavari basin. Additionally, the government plans to undertake various river linking projects, including Damanganga-Pinjal, Konkan to Godavari Basin, Konkan to Tapi Basin, Wainganga-Nalganga, and Tapi Mahakaya recharge schemes.

The Wainganga-Nalganga interlinking project, in particular, aims to irrigate 3,71277 hectares of land, benefiting citizens and farmers across Nagpur, Wardha, Amravati, Yavatmal, Akola, and Buldhana districts.

The Chief Minister also urged the Center to reconsider the price policy for onion procurement under the Onion Price Stabilization Fund Scheme and advocated for an increase in the guaranteed price of soybeans and cotton. He emphasized the need to address the disparity between the guaranteed price and the prevailing market rates, which has led to losses for farmers during the soybean season.

In addition, the Chief Minister appealed to the Center to take immediate measures to prevent milk adulteration and requested assistance in utilizing six acres of Mumbai Port Trust land for the development of a Marine Driver-like 'chowpatty'.

Furthermore, he called for early approval from the union cabinet for the Thane metro project and requested the relocation of the funnel radar zone for redevelopment projects in Dahisar and Andheri, aimed at providing relief to the residents.