Jammu: Responding to allegations that the
Jammu Lake project was coming up in violation of the Indus
Water Treaty (IWT) between India and Pakistan, Jammu and
Kashmir Government Tuesday said the project was well within the
permissible limits of the treaty.
"The construction of the barrage on river Tawi to carve
out a lake is well within the permissible limits of the Indus
Water Treaty," Minister for Irrigation and Flood Control Taj
Mohiuddin said here.
Chairing a review meeting of irrigation projects, he said
the construction of the said project does not violate any of
provisions of the IWT signed in 1964.
A section of the media had reported that the lake coming
up here was in violation of the treaty.
Mohiuddin said the total cultivable command area and
irrigated command in the State are well below the threshold
limits as put up by the treaty.
As per the treaty, the pondage limit is four lac acres
which is yet to be exploited, he said, adding, this is in
addition to the one lakh acre limit of irrigation acreage yet
to be attained in the region.
Mohiuddin said the aim of the project is to prevent
excess water during floods from being wasted and use it to
irrigate more land and promote water transport in the river,
giving it an aesthetic look.
The Minister asked engineers to use modern technology to
prevent water wastage and seepage in canals and irrigation
systems so that water reaches more and more people and areas.
PTI
