Centre approves West Bengal's Rs 1,500 cr Ghatal master plan

The Union government has approved the West Bengal government's Ghatal master plan of Rs 1,500-crore, a mega project to dredge riverbeds and bolster embankments of at least 10 major rivers in the state. The Centre will bear 60% of the expenses, while the state government will pay the remaining amount. The state has received a go-ahead from the project investment committee but still, two more approvals are needed, including one from the Finance Ministry, before the Ghatal master plan takes a definite shape, a senior official said. The project entails dredging riverbeds and strengthening of embankments of 10 significant rivers including Shilabati, Rupnarayan, and Kansabati, which get swollen during monsoon causing floods, and some canals in Paschim and Purba Medinipur districts. Ghatal is a low-lying riverine region in Paschim Medinipur district that gets impacted by floods almost every year. A nine-member team including West Bengal ministers and Trinamool Congress lawmakers had met Gajendra Singh Shekhawat Jal Shakti Minister and Rajiv Kumar NITI Aayog vice-chairman and sought funds for the project in September last year. Image Source Also read: Austria's OeEB lends 13 mn euros for Namami Gange's STP in Bengal