Bihar chief minister Nitish Kumar on Thursday inaugurated IndiaтАЩs longest rubber dam тАШGayaji DamтАЩ on the Falgu river and steel foot over bridge for the convenience of visitors who visit during Pitripaksha Mela to pay homage to their ancestors.
This function comes a day after Kumar arrived from the national Capital where he had gone to meet leaders of opposition parties.
тАЬThe meeting with leaders of opposition parties was good in Delhi. It is the beginning of the initiative for a larger plan and it will continue. I am not a candidate for any post. My focus is on bringing all the opposition parties together, as that can make the difference in 2024,тАЭ he told mediapersons before going to Gaya.
Keeping in view of the religious beliefs associated with the place, Kumar had proposed the name тАШGayaji DamтАЩ.
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тАЬIt is a place of salvation. I am happy the dam has been completed ahead of its deadline and before the Pitripaksha Mela, starting Friday. Now, the second major step will be to ensure Ganga water in Gaya and store it here all through the year. Ganga water has reached up to Rajgir and it should reach Gaya by year-end,тАЭ he added, thanking water resources minister Sanjay Kumar Jha and his team for completing the project, the foundation stone for which was laid on September 22, 2020, despite Covid disruptions.
With the rubber dam on the Falgu River, which is a vast stretch of sand dunes, it will draw more pilgrims and change the landscape.
тАЬThe dam has been built at an estimated cost of тВ╣324crore. Experts from IIT (Roorkee) were involved with the project. There will be enough water in the dam round the year for the convenience of pilgrims,тАЭ he added.
Deputy CM Tejashwi Prasad Yadav said the rubber dam, which presents a picturesque site, was a manifestation of the CMтАЩs vision.
тАЬUnder Nitish Kumar, the Grand Alliance (GA) government will strive to live up to peopleтАЩs expectations. The CM has directed all the departments to work on the job front. We are here to address all your issues,тАЭ he added.
Responding to former CM Jitan Ram ManjhiтАЩs remarks that he would like to address Nitish Kumar as PM so that Tejashwi Prasad Yadav could be the CM, the deputy CM said he had enough responsibilities and did not have any interest beyond that.
тАЬNitish Kumar has been serving Bihar for years and he will keep doing so. We will extend our cooperation to him. There is no confusion about that. We are not into rhetoric. Those who came to power in 2014 had promised interlinking of rivers, turning Benaras into Kyoto and jobs, but have nothing to show. We believe in action. The rubber dam speaks volumes of the vision and commitment of Nitish Kumar, тАЬhe added.
Finance minister Vijay Kumar Choudhary said Nitish Kumar had demonstrated the Hindi phrase тАШulti Ganga bahanaтАЩ (to do the improbable) by not just visualising the rubber dam, but also making it a reality ahead of time for the benefit of lakhs of pilgrims and Gaya.
тАЬNow, he is also working to bring Ganga water to the arid regions,тАЭ he added.
