Provincial Minister for Irrigation and Chairman PIDA, Mian Yawar Zaman, has said that Punjab government is working on mega projects with the co-operation of international organisations for providing best facilities of irrigation to the farmers’ community so that farmers at tail ends could also equally benefit from the canal water.
He expressed these views while reviewing development activities under PISIP project with the co-operation of JICA. Additional Secretary(Technical) Irrigation Khalild Hussain Qureshi, General Manager PIDA Afzal Anjum Toor, General Manager(Operation) PIDA Muhammad Younas Bhatti, Deputy General Manager Syed Shaiq Hussain Abidi, Director Strategic Planning unit Muhammad Aamir Khan and field officers deputed in Area Water Board of Faisalabad, Bahawalnagar and DG Khan were present on the occasion.
The Minister was told that work of brick-lining of canals is continuing on pilot basis in selected areas of district Chiniot, Bahawalnagar and DG Khan under PISIP with the co-operation of JICA and according to the programme, the target will be completed by June current fiscal year. The Minister was informed that under the project, awareness is being created among the farmers about the modern techniques of water saving so that maximum agri production could be achieved by using minimum amount of water and the land be saved from water logging and salinity.
The meeting was informed that farmers are benefiting from the projects launched under institutional reforms and 100 percent targets of the project will be achieved due to the interest of the farmers.
Mian Yawar Zaman while lauding the co-operation of international institutions for reforms of irrigation said that government would take steps for ensuring awareness to the cultivators of the province about canal water saving techniques so that equal amount of water could be made available to the cultivable land.