Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi visited poll-bound Gujarat state and inaugurated the first phase of the Saurashtra Narmada Avataran for Irrigation project (SAUNI), under which nearly 10 dams and reservoirs of Rajkot, Jamnagar and Morbi would receive water from Narmada.
Phase 1 of SAUNI, situated at the Aji-3 dam near Rajkot, was developed at a cost of £156.2 million with a 58 km pipeline. Over 10 dams are said to be benefited with 6,475 MCFT of water from the canal network. The project will be most beneficial to the 'drought-prone' Saurashtra region, which will get a dedicated water supply through four link pipelines. The state government will use the additional 43,500 million cubic feet of flood water from the river to supplement 115 existing dams in the region through the Narmada canal network. The area has 138 dams, most of which dry up after the rainy season, prompting severe water crisis.
After the inauguration, Modi addressed a massive crowd of farmers and locals. Also present at the occasion was former chief minister Anandiben Patel, Chief Minister Vijay Rupani, Deputy Chief Minister Nitin Patel, and state party chief Jitubhai Vaghai, and several other MPs and MLAs. Having laid the foundation stone of the project in 2014, Modi said that even as the CM of the state, it had always been his firm belief that water was most important for the farmer. He said that the water table in the state had begun to rise, and check dams have also been built in large numbers. "I still remember when I met lawmakers of Saurashtra and talked about SAUNI Yojana. This is an initiative that will make every Gujarati proud."
"Gujarat has adopted the mantra of Vikas. This mantra is going to transform Gujarat. We took up the issue of better road connectivity across India, and particularly in the villages. Do you remember how tough it was to get a gas connection? Through the Ujjwala Yojana, we want to give every Indian a gas connection," Modi said.
