Chief Minister Nayab Singh Saini said the government is committed to ensuring adequate irrigation water reaches every field. To achieve this, the Irrigation Department will form farmer groups and construct community tanks for every 10 acres or more of farmland. These tanks will be filled with canal water and irrigation will be carried out through micro-irrigation systems.
The government will provide an 85 per cent subsidy for the construction of such tanks, Saini announced.
The CM made these remarks while chairing a review meeting of the Irrigation and Water Resources Department’s five-year action plan under Haryana Vision-2047, held at the Civil Secretariat on Saturday. He emphasised that the department must move beyond traditional irrigation methods and, in line with Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s “Per Drop – More Crop” initiative, prepare future-ready plans aligned with developed nations that manage limited water resources efficiently, in order to achieve the goals of Viksit Bharat-2047.
Despite limited water resources, optimum utilisation is possible, he said, adding that departmental schemes must be visible on the ground. Farmers should be encouraged to reduce open-field irrigation practices. Under the new system, irrigation costs will be minimised, and farmers will no longer need to install tube wells.
Initially, the scheme will be implemented in nine districts – Bhiwani, Charkhi Dadri, Gurugram, Mahendragarh, Nuh, Rewari, Hisar, Jhajjar and Sirsa – where farmer groups will be formed and community tanks constructed for land holdings of 10 acres or more, with 85 per cent government subsidy. Water will be supplied to these tanks through canal pipelines, and solar panels will be installed on them. The CM said drip and sprinkler irrigation systems will be implemented in the connected fields, enabling farmers to irrigate crops as per requirement. This will eliminate the need for tubewells and reduce dependence on electricity and water availability. Open-field irrigation will be discontinued, enabling more area to be irrigated with less water. He said that micro-irrigation systems should be introduced in sugarcane and cotton crops from this year, said Saini.
Saini said the Irrigation Department may initiate tenders this year to convert entire village agricultural land into micro-irrigation systems in the selected nine districts, involving modern agri-technology companies. This will enable farmers to receive irrigation water in a smart and efficient manner without additional expenditure, he said.
