Patna: Bihar’s chief secretary, Pratyaya Amrit, on Monday reviewed progress on two of the state’s major irrigation schemes — the North Koel Reservoir Project and the Mandai Weir Project — urging officials and contractors to ensure timely completion ahead of the summer heat and monsoon season.
At the meeting, the water resources department presented detailed status reports on both projects. The Chief Secretary stressed that delays could undermine the benefits of the schemes, particularly in drought-prone regions.
The North Koel Reservoir Project, spanning 162km, is expected to provide relief to drought-affected areas of Aurangabad and Gaya districts. Officials said 90% of land acquisition had been completed in both districts. The chief secretary set a deadline of April 30 for completion of the remaining work in Aurangabad and May for Gaya.
Representatives of WAPCOS, the project management consultancy, said 60% of the construction work would be completed by the end of March. However, the review found that work under Packages 8, 9, 10 and 11, handled by MSR Construction and Niyati Construction, was progressing more slowly than anticipated. Amrit directed the contractors to increase manpower and machinery to meet stipulated timelines and instructed senior headquarters officials to conduct regular site inspections.
The Mandai Weir Project, located on the Falgu river and aimed at providing irrigation to blocks including Modanganj, Ekangarasrai and Dhanarua in Jehanabad, Nalanda and Patna districts, was reported to be progressing satisfactorily. The district magistrate of Jehanabad said 73% of the physical work had been completed.
Officials said there were no issues related to labour, payment, manpower or machinery at the Mandai site. Compensation payments to tenant farmers were also proceeding smoothly, with no reported disruption to construction.
The meeting was attended by Santosh Mall, principal secretary of the water resources department; N Vijayalakshmi, additional chief secretary of planning and development; Jai Singh, secretary (resources) in the finance department; and the district magistrates of Gaya, Aurangabad and Jehanabad, who joined either in person or via video conference. Contractors and senior representatives of WAPCOS were also present.
