Bhubaneswar: The state government has planned to implement World Bank funded Rejuvenating Watersheds for Agriculture Resilience through Innovative Development (REWARD) project in seven districts of the state to ensure efficient water management and enhanced cropping area.
The project would be implemented in Sambalpur, Dhenkanal, Nayagarh, Deogarh, Koraput, Nabarangpur and Sundargargh districts from next financial year. State Agriculture and Farmers’ Empowerment department would execute the project with help of its Soil Conservation and Watershed Management Directorate, official sources said here, Thursday.
The state government expects a $50 million loan from the World Bank to implement the REWARD project in the seven districts over a period of six years.
The total cost of the project is expected to be around Rs 500 crore. While the World Bank would fund 70 per cent of the project cost, the state has to share the balance adopting public financial management system, the sources said.
About 1.90 lakh farmers will be benefited from the project. Efficient water management, soil fertility improvement, adoption of standard agricultural practices and enhancement of cultivation are some of the salient features of the proposed project.
The REWARD project would be implemented in Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh apart from Odisha, with the World Bank extending $178 million loan to the three states. The total project cost in the three states is estimated to be 350 million USD.
