Assam irrigation project to be finished by March 2022

DISPUR: The Assam Legislative Assembly was informed on Friday, August 7, that Dhansiri Irrigation Project, the most expensive project in Assam, will be finished by the end of this fiscal year. Officials have decided to not resume the interlinked 20 MW Dhansiri Hydroelectric Power Project which was suspended in 1996. Ashok Singhal, Minister of Irrigation and Urban Development, Government of Assam, said that the initial expenditure on the construction work had been Rs 15.83 crore which has now escalated to Rs 567.05 crore. He added that so far over Rs 444.18 crores has been spent on the project. 

Singhal said that due to various factors the project has not been completed yet but all necessary steps will be taken to complete it by March 2022. The project has an irrigation potential of 77,230 hectares, annually. Singhal, while talking about the Dhansiri Hydroelectric Power Project, said that it is not in a state of revival. The machinery used in its construction has become junk and that resuming the project would mean a “never-ending process” of repair works. 

Singhal told the Assembly that the erstwhile Assam State Electricity Board in November 1986, had taken over the plant for power generation of the hydel project. However, it could not provide satisfactory results causing its suspension in 1996.