Gandhinagar, October 10, 2026: Gujarat Chief Minister Bhupendra Patel has granted administrative approval to the ₹1,331.30 crore Daman-Ganga Lift Irrigation Scheme, which will lift surplus water from the Madhuban Reservoir to irrigate about 17,000 hectares across 46 villages in the tribal-dominated Kaprada and Dharampur talukas of Valsad district. The scheme targets South Gujarat's hilly belt, where farmland sits above the reach of the existing gravity-fed canal network.
Why a lift scheme
The eastern parts of Kaprada and Dharampur lie at elevations that canals cannot serve, so farmers there have mostly depended on groundwater, which limits multiple cropping. Monsoon rainfall in the hills largely runs off, making winter and summer crops difficult. The scheme will pump water uphill to areas between 65 metres and 382 metres above sea level.
The feasibility and engineering study was carried out by the state's Narmada, Water Resources, Water Supply and Kalpsar Department, which assessed several routes and selected "Alternative-3". According to the IANS report, the hydrological assessment found that the reservoir can supply 122.33 million cubic metres a year for the scheme without affecting existing allocations.
Key infrastructure
| Component | Detail |
|---|---|
| Approved cost | ₹1,331.30 crore |
| Area to be irrigated | About 17,000 hectares |
| Villages | 46, in Kaprada and Dharampur talukas |
| Main pipeline | About 53 km |
| Branch and feeder pipelines | More than 188 km |
| Pumping stations | 3: near Fatehpur (Madhuban Dam), Burvad and near Kistonia |
| Combined pumping capacity | 56,400 kW (75,600 HP) |
| Design capacity | 500 cusecs |
The main pumping station will come up on government land near Fatehpur village, close to Madhuban Dam. Break pressure tanks near Kaprada village will reduce excess static pressure as water moves on towards Dharampur. Gujarat First reported that the network will run underground, a design intended to keep land acquisition to a minimum, and a SCADA system will monitor pumping, flow and pressure in real time.
How water will be distributed
- The system will operate about 100 days a year on a 15-day rotation between two zones.
- Zone 1 (28 villages of Kaprada) has a peak requirement of 320 cusecs; Zone 2 (17 villages across Kaprada and Dharampur) needs 180 cusecs, as per the zone-wise break-up in the reports.
- Instead of piping water to individual farms, the scheme will feed 26 village ponds and 81 check dams, which will serve as local storage and help recharge groundwater.
What it means for the region
For Valsad's hill talukas, the scheme is aimed at making multiple cropping possible in areas that have so far depended mainly on groundwater. The reports describe the project as being in the final stage before work begins, but no construction timeline or completion date has been announced yet.