KOLKATA, 15 JAN: The state government's decision to facilitate farming through watershed management in around 3.40 lakh hectares of land that has been lying barren due to water scarcity reinstates the faith that Miss Mamata Banerjee's priority remains agriculture. The state government has submitted a detailed project report (DPR) to the Centre to start the project soon. Such stretches of land, where cultivation had been impossible due to water scarcity lie in Purulia, Bankura, Birbhum, Darjeeling, Jalapaiguri, West Midnapore, and some parts of Burdwan as these areas are slightly tilted and rainwater drains at particular points along a stream (watershed). Topography is also the key element that is affecting cultivation in these areas and so the state government had zeroed in on watershed management, that is use of all the resources, including land, water, vegetation, to alleviate drought, moderate floods, to prevent soil erosion and improve water availability in such areas, said a senior official, adding the agricultural department has conducted a detailed survey and found that around 3.40 lakh hectare land has been rendered unsuitable for cultivation due to water scarcity. Mr Rabindranath Bhattacharya, state agricultural minister, said the project will help farming in at least 10 districts where vast tracts of land are left uncultivated due to water scarcity. The project will be completed within five years and farmers of the local areas will get the benefit in 16 years. Around Rs 7,700 crore will be spent to implement the project. Mr Bhattacharya said people of the local area under this project would also get filtered water as this scheme is also included in this project. The Centre would fund 90 per cent of the project and the rest would be borne by the state government. In the initial stage, Rs 450 crore DPR has been submitted to the Centre by the state government. The project would also benefit farmers who work on less cultivable land where crop is sowed only once a year, as the project would augment production three fold. Big reservoirs will be created for facilitating farming. Ground water recharging project will also enable the farmers to cultivate land. Recharging of abandoned tube wells, dug wells and trenches will also help farmers to use the water for cultivation and other purposes, a senior official said. Though rainwater harvesting projects had been implemented by the state in Purulia, Bankura and Birbhum through the West Bengal Pollution Control Board (WBPCB), this is the first time the state has taken up the project on such a large scale.