Bihar Cabinet clears Indrapuri Reservoir Project, approves 43 other initiatives

The Bihar Cabinet Tuesday cleared the decks for the construction of the Indrapuri Reservoir after officially endorsing an agreement with Jharkhand to share water for irrigation, among other purposes. This move is expected to significantly boost irrigation facilities across large parts of southern Bihar.

Arvind Kumar Chaudhary, Additional Chief Secretary, Cabinet Secretariat Department, announced the decision in a post-cabinet briefing. The Cabinet, chaired by Chief Minister Nitish Kumar, approved 43 agenda items, including two Bills.

Giving approval to the Water Resources Department’s proposal, the Cabinet cleared a draft Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to be signed between Bihar and Jharkhand.

This decision follows the Central Water Commission’s approval to the draft agreement, Chaudhary stated, adding that the Indrapuri Reservoir Project would strengthen irrigation facilities across at least eight districts – Bhojpur, Buxar, Rohtas, Kaimur, Aurangabad, Patna, Gaya, and Arwal.

“With the approval of the agreement, the construction of the Indrapuri Reservoir Project can now move forward,” Chaudhary told The Indian Express.

Following the bifurcation of Bihar in 2000, the reservoir project has remained stalled for years due to disputes over water sharing. As per the 1973 Bansagar agreement, entered into by Madhya Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh, and undivided Bihar, undivided Bihar was allocated 7.75 million acre-feet of water from the Sone River. After Jharkhand was carved out of Bihar, it sought a share of this allocation and, in the absence of a formal arrangement, withheld its assent to the Indrapuri Project.

This deadlock was finally resolved at the 27th Eastern Regional Conference, held on July 10, 2025, in Ranchi. Following the agreement reached at the conference, out of the 7.75 million acre feet of water allocated to undivided Bihar, Bihar will receive 5.75 million acre feet, while Jharkhand will receive 2.0 million acre feet.

Officials told The Indian Express that this settlement uprooted a major administrative hurdle that had prevented the project from materialising.

In another key decision, the Cabinet approved three private investment proposals worth over ₹400 crore. These include the setting up of a pipes and fittings manufacturing unit by Logipark Patna Pvt Ltd for a logistics park and warehouse facility spread over 5,59,372.78 square feet in the Vaishali district, at an investment of ₹104 crore. This project is expected to directly generate 500 jobs.

The Cabinet approved administrative sanction of ₹138.82 crore for the acquisition of 50 acres of land for the construction of a logistics park and cargo hub near Darbhanga airport. It also sanctioned ₹255.38 crore for installing 9,073 CCTV cameras in 53 jails across the state.

The Cabinet also decided to hand over supervision and monitoring of the government’s ‘Saat Nishchay-3’ programme to the Bihar Vikas Mission, and approved ₹30 crore for the Bihar Advocates Welfare Trust Committee, including a ₹5,000 monthly stipend for newly enrolled advocates, along with funds for setting up e-libraries.

Among other approvals were Rs 653 crore for laying underground electric cables and SCADA-DMS works in Patna, Rs 314.20 crore for the construction of Bihar Bhawan in Mumbai, and Rs 142 crore for land acquisition linked to the Patna Ring Road project under the Bharatmala scheme.