MUMBAI: They are cynically called build-and-forget projects. At a time when the state faces a fierce drought, the irony is that Maharashtra has nearly 70,000 small irrigation projects worth over 4,600 crore—but they are barely used. Only 12% of the irrigation potential they have generated so far is actually utilized, according to Maharashtra's Economic Survey for 2014-15.
Scattered across the state, these tiny bunds, percolation tanks and canals could have made a critical difference to water-starved villages. But with hardly anyone to look after them, the bulk of these schemes have fallen into disrepair, say experts. Some are choked with silt, others broken or even vandalized.
The state has 69,781 minor irrigation projects in the local sector, with each project having the potential to irrigate up to 250 hectares (an area equivalent to 80% the size of the Bandra Kurla Complex). The irrigation potential generated by such projects by 2013 was 16.25 lakh hectares. Yet of this, merely 2 lakh hectares was utilized, the recently released Economic Survey reveals.
Bizarrely, the usage is even lower than the previous year when there were 3,000 fewer projects. The irrigation potential utilized in 2012-13 was, in fact, marginally higher at 2.15 lakh hectares, according to last year's Economic Survey.
The problem is these small, local projects are not maintained, experts say. "These are wasted assets. We call them build-and-forget projects. There is no budget or manpower dedicated to manage them," says Pradeep Purandare, expert member of the Marathwada Statutory Development Board.
