The Centre has expressed concern over Karnataka dragging its feet in submitting irrigation schemes for allocation of funds under the Prime Minister’s Vidarbha package.

Officials in the Union agriculture ministry which handles issues relating to the package — mainly conceived in the light of the farmers’ suicides in Karnataka, Maharashtra, Andhra Pradesh and Kerala — said eight months after the package has been rolled out, the State was yet to send details of irrigation schemes seeking funds.

Over a three-year period, the six districts of Karnataka are to get a  total of Rs 2680 crore for 11 components under the package. This includes a subsidy of Rs 1,560 crore and loan of Rs 1,120 crore.

Irrigation is the biggest component under the package for the State with an allocation of Rs 1,666 crore. Under irrigation, the allocation for major and medium projects is Rs 1,208 crore (Rs 725 crore as grant and Rs 483 crore as loan) and rest Rs 458 crore for minor irrigation.

According to the ministry, while details under minor irrigation (watershed development, check dams and rain water harvesting schemes) have been sent to NABARD, no detailed project report has been submitted under major and medium projects.

This has led to delay in clearing these projects, they said while pointing out that Andhra Pradesh’s utilisation under major irrigation was already to the tune of Rs 400 crore under the package.

No worry: State

However, Karnataka Principal Secretary for Water Resources A K M Nayak told Deccan Herald that there was no cause for concern as the details have just been submitted to the Central Water Commission office in Bangalore.

“Many of these projects  are in the Cauvery basin which are our ongoing projects. We have already made provision for them under the ‘counterpart budget provision’ (for allocations under Central funding).

These projects are yet to get clearance from the Centre. They were not cleared earlier because of the inter-state dispute with Tamil Nadu. However, with the Cauvery Water Disputes Tribunal having given its award, there should be no problem now in getting their clearances,” he added.

As a welcome sign, the tribunal, which had fixed 11.2 lakh acre of cultivable area in the basin, removed this stipulation in the final order.

With this, Karnataka can increase its area although it will have to go by the water available for irrigation after releasing the stipulated quantity to Tamil Nadu. Mr Nayak added that for most of the projects falling under the Krishna basin, funds have been sought under the Accelerated Irrigation Benefit Programme and not under the Vidarbha package.

As per the Union ministry, Karnataka, under the package, has been allocated Rs 1,194 crore under rescheduling and restructuring of loans, Rs 178 crore for seed replacement, Rs 106 crore for horticulture development and Rs 100 crore for other activities such as animal husbandry.

Under the package, Rs 50 lakh has been allocated to each of the six districts to pay ex-gratia to the kin of farmers who commit suicide.