Jaipur, Dec 28 (IANS): The much-awaited Eastern Rajasthan Canal Project (ERCP) will soon get the status of a national project and 90 per cent of the money will be given by the Centre as a consensus was reached between Rajasthan and Madhya Pradesh.

Union Jal Shakti Minister Gajendra Singh Shekhawat has confirmed to take forward the ERCP through the river linking project. An important meeting was held in the Ministry of Jal Shakti in Delhi on Wednesday to give the status of national project to ERCP on the model of river linking project. Senior officials of Rajasthan and Madhya Pradesh participated in it.

After discussion on the revised draft of the MoU on ERCP in the meeting, a consensus was reached between Rajasthan and Madhya Pradesh. Now Rajasthan Chief Minister Bhajan Lal Sharma and Madhya Pradesh CM Mohan Yadav will meet and sign on the MoU in January and prepare the final outline.

ERCP is a project worth Rs 45,000 crore. When taken forward under the river linking project, the central government will spend 90 per cent of the money. The state government will have to pay only 10 per cent, which amounts to only Rs 4,500 crore. 13 districts will get drinking and irrigation water from ERCP. There will be irrigation in about two lakh hectares.

There has been a lot of political back-and-forth between Congress and BJP over the demand to give the status of national project to ERCP. During the last five years of Congress rule, the then CM Ashok Gehlot wrote letters to the Centre several times. Meanwhile, the Gehlot government decided to complete the ERCP work at its own level and kept a separate budget for it. PM Narendra Modi had assured to give the status of national project to ERCP during the Assembly election campaigning.

Union Jal Shakti Minister Gajendra Singh Shekhawat, during his visit to Eastern Rajasthan before the Assembly elections, had said, "Bring BJP rule and take the status of national project to ERCP." This was seen as his promise.

This link project will not only provide drinking water to the residents of 13 districts of Eastern Rajasthan, but will also ensure water supply to industrial areas. The 2.8 lakh hectare area of Malba and Chambal region of Madhya Pradesh will also be irrigated. The DPR of the revised plan is also likely to be prepared by March next year.

Shekhawat has been trying for a long time to implement ERCP in Rajasthan. He had said that this project will be implemented on priority basis as soon as the BJP government is formed in Rajasthan. Not only this, Shekhawat also included the ERCP-PKC link project in the five priority works.