Katni, July 17 -- Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Mohan Yadav on Friday inspected India's longest water tunnel, Sleemanabad Tunnel, in Katni district, and said the "historic milestone" will carry Narmada water to the Son Basin and provide irrigation to around 2.45 lakh hectares of agricultural land across the state.

The 11.952-km-long Sleemanabad Tunnel with a diameter of 10.14 metres has been constructed at a cost of around Rs 1,600 crore. It will transport Narmada water to the Son Basin through gravity flow without the use of pumps, strengthening irrigation facilities in Jabalpur, Katni, Maihar, Satna, Panna and Rewa districts.

The tunnel is a part of a 197-km trans-valley canal of the Bargi Diversion Project being developed by the Narm...