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Manipur multipurpose dam delayed because of financial problems

Chiang Mai (Mizzima) – The Deputy Minister for Agriculture and Irrigation Khin Zaw told Burmese lawmakers on Thursday that the Manipur Multipurpose Dam has been delayed because of lack of money, bringing to three the number of dams delayed due to financial problems.

The project is still in a beginning stage and only about 13 per cent will be completed this year, he told Parliament, in response to a question from Union Solidarity and Development Party MP Tin Hlaing in the Lower House.

In 2004, work on the Manipur multi-purpose dam project began on the Manipur River near Hsedaw Village in Kalay Township, Sagaing Region.
A photo in the  state-run newspaper New Light of Myanmar in 2004 showed former Senior-General Than Shwe inspecting Manipur Dam. Photo: New Light of Myanmar
A photo in the state-run newspaper New Light of Myanmar in 2004 showed former Senior-General Than Shwe inspecting Manipur Dam. Photo: New Light of Myanmar

Khin Zaw told lawmakers that the dam will irrigate 50,000 acres of farmland and will generate 380 megawatts of electricity. On the other hand, the state-run newspaper New Light of Myanmar reported in 2004 that former Senior-General Than Shwe inspected the dam and said it would irrigate about 100,000 acres of farmland and generate 540 megawatts of electricity.

The Manipur dam project is the third hydro energy project that has come up for questions in this session of Parliament. Earlier,  Agriculture and Irrigation Minister Myint Hlaing said that the Yazajo Dam Project in Kalay Township in Sagaing Region and the Myittha Dam Project in Gangaw Township in Magwe Region were delayed because of financial problems.

Other questions raised in Parliament on Thursday included flooding issues caused by the blockage of canals in Wetlet Township of Shwebo District in Sagaing Region, and questions regarding the construction of a sand sluice gate at the Samar Diver Weir at Myittha on the Panlaung River in Mandalay Region.

USDP MP Thura Aye Myint of Wetlet constituency said that Thaphanseik Dam supplies water to 101,279 acres of farmland in Wetlet Township in Shwebo District in Sagaing Region. However, in regard to three canals including the Pyadthat, Pintaryoe and Aungtatkon dam canals, only the Pyadthat canal was designed for prevention against floods.

For farmland in Wetlet Township, water is provided from the Thaphanseik Dam in Kyunhla Township in Shwebo District through the Karboe Dam. However, when there is more than four inches rainfall in Shwebo and Wetlet townships, the irrigated areas of Wetlet Township are flooded, the minister said. Financial shortfalls prevent correcting the problem, he said, but added that after the 19-mile-long Pintaryoe canal and 21-mile-long Aungtatkon canal are completed, they would protect 1,250 acres of farmlands from flooding.

In response to a question from MP Kyi Maung of Myittha constituency, Khin Zaw said that the Diversion Weir at Panlaung River in Myittha Township in Kyaukse District in Mandalay Region supplies water to farmlands through the Samar canal and arrangements have been made to remove weeds and silt in Kathaung Creek to allow a proper flow of water upstream of the diversion weir.

He said feasibility studies have been conducted to install a sand sluice gate at the diversion weir, and designs have been created depending on budget allotments. The already-completed dams and digging of canals are depending on the budget, he said.

The secretary of the Public Accounts Committee of the Lower House, Maung Toe, told Mizzima that the deficit for the central government budget for the fiscal year 2011-2012 is 2.2 trillion kyat while the deficit for regional and state government is 170 billion kyat.

http://www.mizzima.com/news/inside-burma/5980-manipur-multipurpose-dam-delayed-because-of-financial-problems.html

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