Titlagarh: People of 18 villages under this subdivision raised the issue of lack of irrigation facilities at a public hearing chaired by Bolangir Collector Chanchal Rana recently.
The district administration Tuesday resumed hearing of public grievances after a hiatus of two years.
The farmers pointed out that the Odisha government had set up Gurujibhatta lift irrigation project at a cost of Rs 35 crore at Ranka. The project was completed two years ago. It is aimed at providing irrigation coverage to 2,000 hectares in 18 villages. Despite the commissioning of the project, scores of farmers are still deprived of water due to faulty survey and construction, the farmers pointed out.
During the time when Covid-19 hit the state, several acres of land were left fallow as water was not available from the project. L&T had been given the responsibility of construction work. The district administration has asked the company to rectify the faults so that water would reach areas where irrigation is needed. L&T, however, has blamed the pandemic for failing to complete the project in a proper manner.
The farmers demanded that L&T should be told to rectify the construction faults as soon possible. They added that one lift irrigation point has been set up to cater to the irrigation needs for 20 acres, but it failed to give right coverage to the targeted area. They also said that legal action should be taken against L&T if the faults are not rectified immediately.
