Madhya Pradesh has received the first place under National Water Award in the best state category for its excellent work in conservation, promotion and management of water resources. This is the fourth National Water Award-2022 of the country. Vice President Shri Jagdeep Dhankhar honoured Madhya Pradesh Water Resources Minister Shri Tulsiram Silawat and Additional Chief Secretary Shri SN Mishra with the citation for first prize and trophy at New Delhi Vigyan Bhawan. Union Minister of Jal Shakti Shri Gajendra Singh Shekhawat, Minister of State for Jal Shakti Shri Prahlad Singh Patel and Shri Bishweshwar Tudu were also present. As many as 41 winners in 11 different categories were felicitated at the event.
Indore Municipal Corporation was awarded the second prize in the Best Urban Local Body category for its excellent performance in water supply and distribution. Union Jal Shakti Minister Shri Gajendra Singh Shekhawat honoured Mayor of Indore Shri Pushyamitra Bhargava and Additional Commissioner Shri Siddharth Jain with citation, trophy and cash prize of Rs. 1 lakh 50 thousand.
Water Resources Minister Shri Silawat said that historic works have been done for agriculture and farmers under the leadership of Chief Minister Shri Shivraj Singh Chouhan. In the last 18 years, the area under irrigation in the state has increased to 45 lakh hectares, which the state government is committed to increase to 65 lakh hectares by the year 2025. Madhya Pradesh has done excellent work in every field of water management.
Water use efficiency upgrade
There has been an innovation in the state to deliver water directly from the dam to the fields through an underground pipeline. State’s Mohanpura and Kundalia project, whose irrigation capacity is 2 lakh 25 thousand hectare, has been established as an exemplary irrigation project in the field of water use efficiency upgrade.