Rajasthan CM again raises demand of grant of national project status to East Rajasthan Canal Project

Rajasthan Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot on Saturday once again raised the demand of grant of national project status to the state's ambitious East Rajasthan Canal Project (ERCP).

The chief minister raised the issue in the meeting of northern zonal council chaired by Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Saturday.

He also demanded Centre to create posts for member from Rajasthan in Bhakra Beas Management Board (BBMB).

Talking about the ERCP, the chief minister said that it is an ambitious project of Rs 37,247 crore which will benefit 13 districts of the state, namely Jhalawar, Baran, Kota, Bundi, Sawai Madhopur, Ajmer, Tonk, Jaipur, Dausa, Karauli, Alwar, Bharatpur and Dholpur.

He said that Prime Minister Narendra Modi in his rallies held in Jaipur and Ajmer in 2018 had promised to declare ERCP as a national project.

"This issue has been raised continuously by the state at the central level. I request that the central government should declare the Eastern Rajasthan Canal Project as a national project at the earliest," Gehlot said.

He said that more rights should be given to state governments to control cooperative societies.

In the interest of investors, the provisions of Banning of Unregulated Deposit Schemes Act, 2019 should be made more stringent, the chief minister said.

Gehlot said that the registration of multi-state co-operative societies by the Centre should be banned, a portal should be developed for the grievances of the investors and payment to the investors should be made by auctioning confiscated assets of these societies as soon as possible.

He also urged the Central government to revise the funding pattern to 90:10 (centre-state share) for the execution of schemes under Jal Jeevan Mission in view of the geographical challenges in Rajasthan.

Other demands raised by him included extending the period of GST (Goods and Services Tax) compensation by five years from June 2022 to June 2027, release of the pending GST compensation of about Rs 5,000 crore to Rajasthan, increase in the number of beneficiaries under the National Food Security Act (NFSA) in the state from 4.46 crore to 5.24 crore.

Apart from Rajasthan Chief Minister, the northern zonal council was also attended by Haryana CM Manohar Lal Khattar, Himachal Pradesh CM Jai Ram Thakur, Ladakh Lt Governor Radha Krishna Mathur, Delhi Lt Governor Vinai Kumar Saxena, Punjab governor and administrator of Chandigarh Banwarilal Purohit and senior officers from their states were present in the meeting.

Issues on internal security, road, transport, industries, water, power and other issues of common interests were discussed in the meeting, official sources said.

The Northern Zonal Council comprises Haryana, Himachal Pradesh, Jammu and Kashmir, Punjab, Rajasthan, National Capital Territory of Delhi and Union Territory of Chandigarh.

The council helps in developing a coordinated approach through discussions and exchange of views between states on important issues of social and economic development.