Modi lays foundation stone of Ken-Betwa project; recalls Ambedkar’s vision, slams Congress

Khajuraho (MP), Dec 25 (PTI) Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Wednesday accused Congress of ignoring Dr B R Ambedkar’s contribution to the development of water resources in the country as he laid the foundation stone of the Ken-Betwa river linking project in Madhya Pradesh.

Speaking at the programme at Khajuraho in Bundelkhand region, Modi said that in the 21st century, only the nations with adequate and well-managed water resources can advance.

The PM’s comments about Ambedkar came amid the controversy over Union Home Minister Amit Shah’s recent remarks about the iconic leader and the Congress’s nationwide protests over the issue.

Ambedkar’s vision and farsightedness contributed significantly to the strengthening of the country’s water resources, their management and dam construction, Modi said.

Ambedkar played a crucial role in the development of major river valley projects and formation of the Central Water Commission, he added.

“Ask anyone….after the country got independence, who thought about the visionary subject of Jal Shakti? Even my journalist friends will not be able to answer because the truth was suppressed to give credit to one person…..water resources of India, construction of dams, the vision for all this — it was of one great man — Babasaheb Ambedkar,” he said.

“But Congress never gave credit to Babasaheb for the efforts related to water conservation and big dams,” Modi claimed.

“The major challenge of the 21st century is water security. In the 21st century only those countries which have adequate water resources with proper management will move forward,” he said.

Talking about the development projects carried out by the government of late Atal Bihari Vajpayee, Modi said for years Vajpayee was a teacher for several workers like him.

Scholars and analysts should select 100-200 parameters and assess the performance of various governments, those of Congress, the Left, “family-oriented people (dynastic parties)” and coalitions, he suggested.

“…..and compare them with the work done by the BJP. I can say with confidence that wherever BJP has got the opportunity to serve, we have broken all old records and have succeeded in public welfare and development works,” Modi said.

Earlier, there were projects for which the foundation stones were laid 35-40 years ago but the work did not progress, he said, blaming the Congress for the lack of determination to implement them.

“The people of the country elected a BJP government at the centre for the third time. In Madhya Pradesh, all of you are choosing the BJP continuously, and confidence about good governance is the strongest reason for this,” he said.

The measure of good governance is how much benefit government schemes have provided, he said, adding that Congress regimes were good at only making announcements.

“Good governance not only deals with current challenges, but also works on the challenges of future. Unfortunately, there were Congress governments in the country for years. The Congress considers government (power) is its birthright. But it is at loggerheads with governance. Congress and governance can not co-exist,” Modi said.

The people of Bundelkhand too suffered, he said, referring to water scarcity in this region spread across Madhya Pradesh and Uttar Pradesh.

Even after seven decades, there are disputes between various states over river water, and the Congress, being in power “from Panchayat to Parliament,” could have resolved them easily, the PM said, adding, “but Congress’s intentions were bad, so it never made any concrete efforts.”

The Vajpayee government initiated efforts to sort out these disputes, but the Congress stopped them when it came to power in 2004, he claimed.

Mentioning Parbati-Kalisindh-Chambal river-linking project, Modi noted that Madhya Pradesh is now the first state where two river- linking projects are underway, and added that the Ken-Betwa project will usher in prosperity in Bundelkhand.

Mentioning the Jal Jeevan Mission and formation of the Jal Shakti ministry, he said the last 10 years will be remembered for water security and conservation. Tap water reached 12 crore new families in the last five years against just three crore before that, the PM said.

Citing a report in a US newspaper, he said Madhya Pradesh is among top 10 tourist destinations in the world and the Centre has been working to strengthen the tourism sector which will further boost the local economy.

The PM on this occasion also inaugurated the Omkareshwar Floating Solar Project in Khandwa district of the state virtually, and laid the foundation stone of the Daudhan Irrigation Project, part of the river-linking project.

Union Water Resources Minister C R Patil and Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Mohan Yadav handed over two kalash (urns) containing water from Betwa and Ken rivers, respectively, to Modi, who poured it over a model of the project to launch the river linking work.

Nearly 44 lakh people in ten districts of Madhya Pradesh and 21 lakh in Uttar Pradesh will get drinking water under the project, which is estimated to cost Rs 44,605 crore.

Nearly 7.18 lakh agricultural families in 2,000 villages will benefit from the project, which will also generate 103 MW of hydropower and 27 MW of solar energy, officials said.

Modi also released a commemorative stamp and a coin in the memory of Atal Bihari Vajpayee on his birth centenary on this occasion.

The PM also performed ‘bhumi pujan’ or ground-breaking ceremony for the construction of 1,153 Atal Gram Sewa Sadans costing Rs 437 crore.