Jaipur

BJP leaders and workers received Chief Minister Bhajanlal Sharma at the Jaipur airport on Tuesday, lauding him for the Yamuna water agreement between Rajasthan and Haryana.

Sharma returned from New Delhi after the signing of the memorandum of understanding (MoU) between Rajasthan and Haryana for implementation of the 1994 Upper Yamuna River Board (UYRB) agreement. The pact is expected to benefit the state's water-scarce Shekhawati region.

He was welcomed by BJP state president Madan Rathore, Deputy Chief Minister Prem Chand Bairwa, former leader of opposition Rajendra Rathore and a large number of party workers, particularly from the Shekhawati region.

After coming out of the terminal building, Sharma addressed party workers from a specially erected platform outside the airport. He was garlanded by party leaders amid slogans in his support.

The chief minister later boarded an e-bus to reach the BJP state headquarters. Party workers welcomed him at Gandhi Circle and Rambagh circle where he also addressed them.

Speaking at the welcome ceremony at the airport, BJP state president Madan Rathore said Sharma had brought Yamuna water to Rajasthan and that not only Shekhawati but the entire state was proud of him.

He said the project would benefit the whole state as the availability of Yamuna water would ease pressure on existing drinking water sources, allowing water currently being supplied to one region to be diverted to others.

Sharma described Monday as a "historic day" for Rajasthan and said his government had identified water availability as one of its foremost priorities soon after assuming office.

He said Rajasthan's progress depended on ensuring adequate water for drinking, agriculture and industry, and said that the long-pending project had finally been taken forward by his government.

Targeting the Congress, Sharma alleged that despite having governments in Rajasthan, Haryana and at the Centre earlier, the party had failed to pursue the project and had not even written to the Centre on the issue.

Former leader of opposition Rajendra Rathore said the implementation of the project had fulfilled a long-standing dream of the people of Shekhawati.

The MoU signed in New Delhi on Monday paves the way for supply of drinking water to the drought-prone districts of Churu, Jhunjhunu and Sikar in the initial phase.

Under the 1994 agreement among the Yamuna basin states, Rajasthan was allocated 1,917 cusecs of Yamuna water during the monsoon months. However, the state could not utilise its share for decades due to the absence of a conveyance system connecting the Hathnikund Barrage in Haryana with Rajasthan.

READ MORE: Fauzia Dastango's journey of reviving the art of storytelling

The project envisages carrying water from the Hathnikund Barrage to a proposed reservoir in Churu through underground pipelines, from where it will be supplied to beneficiary areas.

Officials have said the project is expected to reduce dependence on groundwater, improve drinking water availability and benefit more than 75 lakh people in the water-stressed Shekhawati region.