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Work on Khuga Dam Project in Manipur resumes
By A Business Correspondent
After inordinate delay owing to scarcity of funds and ethnic clashes, work on the Khuga Dam Project in Manipur has commenced once again. On completion the dam will irrigate 15,000 hectares of land in Churachandpur, Saikot and Kumbi districts of the state. Besides, the project will provide 5 million gallons of drinking water per day and have the capacity to generate 1.75-mw of electricity in-house.
The project was originally conceived in the early 1980's but did not take off due to various reasons. As per the original plan the dam was scheduled to commence operations in 1987 when the cost of the project was estimated at Rs 16 crore. The contract was awarded to a private company in 1983 but no work was carried out. In 1993, the major works contract was given to the National Projects Construction Corporation Ltd. The company started work on the project but stopped it in the year 2000 due to non-clearance of bills. It has since resumed work as the government has assured quick settlement of the bills.
Meanwhile, the cost of the project has leaped to Rs 249 crore. To date Rs 135 crore has been spent on the project. All the old liabilities have been settled and compensation for land has been paid.
For more details please refer to Projectmonitor Prinit Version.
(16/6/02)
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