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The Centre is advancing the Kosi-Mechi river link project in Bihar at a cost of about Rs 6,143 crore.
It is included under the Pradhan Mantri Krishi Sinchayee Yojana's Accelerated Irrigation Benefit Programme (PMKSY-AIBP).
The project diverts surplus Kosi water to the Mahananda basin by remodelling the Eastern Kosi Main Canal.
It will provide irrigation to over 2.1 lakh hectares in Araria, Purnia, Kishanganj and Katihar districts.
The targeted completion is March 2029.
River interlinking transfers water from rivers or basins that have a surplus to those that face shortage, using canals, to spread irrigation and manage floods and droughts. India's National Perspective Plan, coordinated by the National Water Development Agency, envisages many such links. The Kosi-Mechi project is an intra-state link within Bihar: it moves excess water from the flood-prone Kosi — long called the 'Sorrow of Bihar' — to irrigate the Mahananda basin, turning a flood problem in one area into an irrigation gain in another.
Simple Analogy: It is like piping water from an overflowing tank to a dry one so both are balanced.
The Kosi rises in Nepal and the Himalayas and flows through north Bihar, notorious for shifting course and flooding. The link diverts part of its surplus eastward to the Mahananda basin, benefiting the districts of Araria, Purnia, Kishanganj and Katihar in north-east Bihar.
GS Paper 3 > Irrigation, Water Resources and Agriculture
General Awareness > Geography and Government Schemes
The Accelerated Irrigation Benefit Programme component of the Pradhan Mantri Krishi Sinchayee Yojana.
A river-linking project entirely within one state's territory.