Cash-strapped Maharashtra government mulls loan from Shirdi trust to complete dam

In a maiden initiative which holds a ray of hope for parched regions of Maharashtra, the state government is planning to complete work on Nilwande dam with a soft loan from the Shri Saibaba Sansthan Trust at Shirdi. If successful, the idea may pave the way for more dams, which have seen similar time and cost overruns, being completed through funds from trusts and financial institutions.

Maharashtra has about 450 ongoing irrigation projects with a balance cost of Rs 70,750 crore as on April 1, 2014. The state's irrigation coverage is much less than the national average of 45% despite having the highest number of dams in India.

Despite 25 years have gone by, the Nilwande project on the Pravara River in Ahmednagar district is yet to be completed. Senior water resource department officials said only two per cent work, mostly canals, were pending. This work will cost around Rs800 to 850 crore. Once completed, the project will irrigate nearly 10,000 hectares of land.

"We are planning to seek a loan of Rs500 crore from the Sai Sansthan Trust and contribute the balance amount. This will help complete the dam before 2018 when the Sai Baba Samadhi centenary utsav is scheduled. Shirdi, which falls in the command area of the dam, will see a massive influx of devotees which will create a huge demand for water. This water can be made available from the dam's canals," said the official.

The money will be repaid to the temple trust in phases. A meeting in this regard was held by water resources minister Girish Mahajan on Thursday.

The Sai Sansthan had similarly given Rs 50 crore as aid to the newly constructed Shirdi airport at Kakadi village.

The official said the government will provide the remaining funds to the Godavari Marathwada Irrigation Development Corporation, which is constructing the dam. However, considering the Governor's directives for allocation of funds for various regions across Maharashtra to clear developmental backlog, this will have to be met with a corresponding allocation for four other irrigation corporations that handle construction of dams in their respective areas and river basins.

The official added that they would request to the Governor to make an exception here as a special case. If successful, the department will consider taking up work on other incomplete projects through the route wherein soft loans could be taken from Shirdi-like institutions or financial bodies.

Local farmers have agitated in the past demanding that the long-pending Nilwande dam be completed and have even staged protests for the same.

In 2012, the state's economic survey said that irrigation in Maharashtra had risen by just 0.1% to 17.9% from 2001 to 2010 despite Rs 70,000 crore being spent on the sector. This had led then chief minister Prithviraj Chavan to assure a white paper on the issue, which led to confrontation with the NCP and then deputy chief minister Ajit Pawar.

After allegations of alleged corruption in irrigation projects and undue benefits being granted to contractors had surfaced, Pawar had resigned in September 2012 only to be sworn in again two months later. Pawar was the irrigation minister from 1999 to 2010. The Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) has repeatedly pointed to maladministration in the state's irrigation projects.

Maharashtra has five river basin systems, namely, Tapi, Krishna, Godavari, Narmada, which account for 55% of the dependable water yield, while the remaining 45% water flow is from the westward flowing rivers, which originate in the Western Ghats, are monsoon specific and drain into the Arabian Sea.