The Centre will bring 13 per cent of large dams in the country under the World Bank aided Dam Rehabilitation and Improvement Project (DRIP), up from 4 per cent now, Union Minister Arjun Ram Meghwal said Thursday.

Stating that the World Bank has accepted India's proposal for funding Rs 11,000 crore to rehabilitate around 700 dams, the minister of state for water resources said, "We will also take 18 states on board in place of six during the ongoing DRIP."

Addressing the valedictory session of the International Dam Safety Conference here, Meghwal said, "Due to impressive achievement so far, it has been decided to extend the percentage of large dams under DRIP from the current 4 per cent to 13 per cent."

He said technical institutes are being encouraged across the country to offer dam safety courses to increase the number of professionals in this area.

Jumaid Hussain, Country Director-India, World Bank, spoke about how developments in India influences global trends.

He also dwelt on the World Bank's partnership with India to finance dam rehabilitation in the country under DRIP.

The two-day conference was a joint initiative of the Union government, government of Odisha and the World Bank under aegis of the ongoing DRIP.

More than 725 delegates including about 100 from abroad took part in the event.

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