Punjab cabinet clears ₹2,400 crore canal plan to bring water to 1,200 Malwa villages
Old canals will be relined and new distributaries added before the next paddy season. Officials say the plan could cut groundwater use in the region by a fifth.
Chandigarh: The Punjab cabinet on Friday approved a ₹2,400 crore plan to repair and extend the canal network in the Malwa region. The government says it will bring regular canal water to about 1,200 villages that now depend mostly on tube wells.
The work will be done in two phases. The first phase covers 640 km of old canals in Bathinda, Mansa, Muktsar and Fazilka. It is expected to be finished before the next paddy season begins in June.
Why the plan matters
Groundwater levels in many Malwa blocks have fallen by more than a metre a year over the last decade. Farmers say pumping water from deeper wells has raised their electricity and diesel costs.
“If canal water reaches the tail end of every village, farmers will not need to run their tube wells all night.”— A farmer leader from Mansa district (demo quote)
Officials said relining the canals would stop seepage losses, which are estimated at nearly 30% in some stretches.
What happens next
- Tenders for phase one will be issued within 30 days.
- Village water committees will monitor work quality.
- Progress will be shared on a public dashboard every month.
The second phase, covering new distributaries in Sangrur and Barnala, will begin after a survey is completed early next year.
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Harpreet Kaur
Senior correspondent covering agriculture and rural Punjab for APD TV. (Demo author bio.)
