Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann on Friday reiterated his state's old stand that there is “no surplus water” to share.

“As a chief minister, I am saying we do not have any water (to share). We apprised Union Minister Gajendra Singh Shekhawat about it in the meeting..We are firm on our earlier stand that we do not have water, " Mann told reporters after the meeting on the issue.

The meeting took place at a five-star hotel here in which senior officials from the two states also took part.  It was the third meeting between the two chief ministers during the past one year on the issue and the second one during the current year being presided over by Shekhawat in which both CMs are present.

Presenting the case of Punjab in the meeting, Mann said that the state needs more than 54 MAF water to cater to its irrigational needs. However, he said that the situation is so grim that Punjab only has around 14 MAF of water, which it is providing to the food growers. He said that in such a scenario there is no question of sharing even a drop of water with any other states therefore Punjab vehemently opposes the construction of SYL.  

The Chief Minister said that Satluj river has already dried up and there is no question of sharing even a single drop of water from it. He categorically said that Punjab has no surplus water to share with Haryana and reassessment of availability of water is required as per international norms. Mann said that Punjab’s 76.5% blocks (117 out of 153) are over-exploited where the stage of groundwater extraction is more than 100%, whereas in Haryana only 61.5% (88 out of 143) are over-exploited.

Mann said that the water crisis can never be ignored due to which the state will oppose any move to construct the SYL tooth and nail. Showing deep concern over the gravity of the emerging situation following the fast-depleting water table, he said that it is pathetic to learn that the same high-powered motors that are used to extract oil in Dubai and other Gulf nations are being used for gushing out groundwater in the state. He said that in such an alarming situation how construction of the SYL canal can be allowed for the sharing of waters of the state.

He said that Satluj river has already dried up and there is no question of sharing even a single drop of water from it. Rather, Mann said that water from Ganga and Yamuna should be supplied to Punjab through the Satluj river adding that he has raised this issue with the Union government too.

 Mann said that the state Government has emphatically presented the issue of less availability of water and it has been recorded too in the decision of the Apex Court. He said that in the coming hearings too Punjab will solidly present its case in the Supreme Court to protect its rights. He said that the Punjab government is duty bound to ensure that the interests of the state and its people are safeguarded by all means and no stone will be left unturned for it.

CM Mann added that though these states always claim for their right on water of the state but when Punjab was flooded due to excess water from the hilly areas these states had refused to take water from Punjab. He said that Punjab had borne the brunt of the floods due to excessive rain in the hilly areas but these states who claim their right on our waters were unfazed by it. Mann said that Punjab had suffered huge losses but these states who demand water from the state were unaffected by it.

Ahead of the meeting, a few farmers' outfits from Punjab held a protest in Mohali against the meeting, saying Punjab does not have any surplus water to share with anyone.  Bharatiya Kisan Union (Rajewal), Kisan Sangharsh Committee (Punjab), and BKU (Mansa) were among the outfits taking part in the protest.

The SYL canal issue has been a bone of contention between the two states for the past several years.  The canal was conceptualized for the effective sharing of water between the two states from the Ravi and Beas rivers. The project envisages a 214-kilometre canal, of which a 122-kilometre stretch was to be constructed in Punjab and the remaining 92 kilometres in Haryana.

Haryana has completed the project in its territory but Punjab, which launched the work in 1982, shelved it.  

All political parties in Punjab had earlier asserted that the state does not have a single drop of additional water to share with any other state, though political outfits in Haryana had welcomed the apex court directions.