Assam chief minister Sarbananda Sonowal on Thursday launched the construction of an embankment on Sesa river at Kolakhowa and a ring bund at Bogibeel Aithan to alleviate the sufferings of flood-affected people of Lorua and Bogibeel areas.

The projects are to be implemented with an amount of Rs 27.5 crore under the State Owned Priority Development (SOPD) scheme of the Assam government.

Launching the construction of the project at a public meeting held at Kolakhowa on Thursday, Sonowal said: “All-round development of the state is not possible without the growth of the agriculture sector. That is why, the state government is taking up schemes like Chief Minister Samagra Gramya Unnyan Yojana, Mukhya Mantri Krishi Sa-Sajuli Yojana, among others, to empower the farmers economically following in the footsteps of Prime Minister Narendra Modi-led government.”

He said after distribution of tractors under the Chief Minister Samagra Gramya Unnyan Yojana and Rs 5,000 each to five lakh farmers under Mukhya Mantri Krishi Sa-Sajuli Yojana last year, steps had been taken to provide Rs 5,000 again to each of the six lakh farmers in the current year.

“Doubling of farmers’ income in the state is the government’s top priority and the construction of embankment on Sesa river at Kolakhowa and a ring bund at Bogibeel Aithan will enable the people of Lorua and Bogibeel areas to increase their agricultural productivity as they will be protected from floods,” he said.

Saying that the interest of the indigenous people of the state would always be protected, Sonowal asserted that the state government had shown its commitment towards this end by taking the “historic step” of providing land pattas to one lakh landless people and small tea-growers of the state.

He also highlighted the need to facilitate a conducive environment for academic activities to make Assam one of the top states in the country.