MINISTER of Agriculture, Dr. Leslie Ramsammy is urging the contractors working on the Hope Canal Project, at East Coast Demerara, to take advantage of the current weather condition which is good for them.

His urging comes as the June deadline draws closer and, during an interview with the State Media last Saturday, in the Ministry’s Regent Road, Georgetown boardroom, he said the overall project is approximately 38 percent completed.
The US$15M undertaking, which is expected to be the answer to the flooding experienced in the Mahaica/Mahaicony/Abary areas in rainy periods, has four components- the over 10-kilometres channel from the East Demerara Water Conservancy (EDWC), a bridge across the public road, a conservancy head regulator with three gates and sluice at the canal’s Atlantic Ocean end that will have eight gates.
The canal is being excavated by the National Drainage and Irrigation Authority (NDIA) within the Agriculture Ministry, while BK International, DIPCON Engineering and Courtney Benn Contracting Services are contracted for the other three components.
The Minister related that the earthen work, that is the digging of the canal, is about 85 percent finished and the dams are nearly 30 percent done.

HEAD REGULATOR
He reported, further, that the construction of the bridge is some 38 percent complete and the head regulator, which is to release water from the conservancy into the canal, is presently near 40 percent completion.
In addition, Ramsammy mentioned that the eight-door sluice to release water from the canal into the ocean is about 28 percent ready.
He said the work being done by the NDIA is moving at a reasonable pace and added that they are hoping it will be accelerated on the other components since the additional 15 percent of the canal to be dug is entirely dependent on those being completed.
They cannot risk building the canal all the way and the sluice is not ready, because that will put the project at risk for the sea and they cannot take the canal to the conservancy until the head regulator is in place, he explained.
He said, although he is pushing the contractors to finish, he is still concerned and cautious.