Nar-Par-Girna river linking project gets Maharashtra Governor’s nod

The river project would irrigate 53,626 hectares in Nashik, 38,304 hectares in Jalgaon, and 3,830 hectares in Aurangabad in Maharashtra. Representative pic

The state government's ambitious Nar-Par-Girna river link project in North Maharashtra has received an in-principle approval from Governor CP Radhakrishnan on Saturday.

In a tweet posted on X, Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) Maharashtra wrote: "Deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis' ambitious Nar-Par-Girna river link project in North Maharashtra has been approved by the Governor. Through this scheme, 10.64 thousand million cubic feet (TMC) of water is proposed from the western channel Nar-Par-Girna river basin and it will benefit 49,516 hectares in Nashik and Jalgaon districts. This project, worth Rs 7015 crore, will be a boon for Nashik and Jalgaon districts."

According to the website of the National Water Development Agency under the Jal Shakti Ministry, the Nar-Par-Girna Valley link project is an intra-state link proposal to divert the surplus waters from 20 small proposed dams of west-flowing rivers such as the Ambika, Auranga, and Nar-Par basins to the east side -Girna river of Tapi basin - to utilise in the proposed command areas identified in Nashik, Jalgaon and Aurangabad areas of Girna sub-basin.

The proposal would irrigate 53,626 ha in Nashik, 38,304 ha in Jalgaon, and 3,830 ha in Aurangabad areas of Girna sub-basin.

The approval by the Governor comes as a boost for BJP ahead of the Assembly polls which are likely to be held in October-November. The current dispensation consists of BJP, Shiv Sena, and the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP). The Opposition Maharashtra Vikas Aghadi, which comprises the Congress, Shiv Sena (Uddhav Balasaheb Thackeray), and NCP (Sharadchandra Pawar) will look to wrest power back from the ruling alliance following its victorious performance in the Lok Sabha polls held two months ago.