The logjam over the decade-old contentious issue of Satluj Yamuna Link (SYL) canal continues. Another round of meeting between the two warring states of Punjab and Haryana to arrive at some resolution over SYL canal in the presence of Union Jal Shakti Minister Gajendra Singh Shekhawat on Wednesday remained inconclusive.
Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann, sticking to the state’s earlier stand that it “does not have even a single drop of spare water”, demanded that instead of talking about SYL, constructing the YSL (Yamuna-Satluj Link) canal should be considered to give Yamuna’s water to Satluj.
On the other hand, Haryana Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar insisted on implementing the Supreme Court’s decision to complete the SYL while blaming the state of Punjab, led by Mann, for refusing to bring SYL issue on agenda. Khattar maintained that the state will inform the Apex Court about Punjab’s “reluctant” attitude towards not resolving the issue.
This was the fourth meeting between the Chief Ministers and the third chaired by the Union Jal Shakti Minister Gajendra Singh Shekhawat.
Khattar, after the meeting, said that no consensus has been reached in this meeting as well. “The Supreme Court in its decision had announced that SYL should be constructed but Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Maan and his administrative wing are not ready to find any solution to this issue,” he said.
“Instead of discussing this pivotal issue, Punjab Chief Minister and his administrative wing are repeatedly saying that there is no water in the state. Rather they are asking to discuss sharing of water whereas a separate tribunal has been set up for discussing issues related to water sharing. Distribution of water will be done according to the recommendation of the tribunal,” said Khattar.
Haryana to Apprise SC about Punjab’s ‘Reluctant Attitude’
He said that Punjab Government is not even accepting the Supreme Court’s decision wherein the Act brought by the Punjab Government in 2004 has been repealed. “Punjab Chief Minister says that the 2004 Act still exists which is completely unconstitutional,” added Khattar.
“SYL canal should be built and the Haryana Government would apprise the Supreme Court about Punjab’s reluctant attitude over this issue…We will accept the decision of the Supreme Court in this regard,” said Khattar.
Fix Timeline, Demands Haryana CM
Khattar clarified that SYL is the right of Haryana residents and he is hopeful that the State will get this right. “SYL water is very important for Haryana. Now, it is necessary to fix a timeline in this matter so that the availability of water to the farmers of the state can be ensured,” he added.
“It is a well-known fact that despite two Supreme Court judgments, Punjab has not completed the construction of SYL. Instead of implementing the SC decisions, Punjab tried to obstruct their implementation by enacting the Cancellation of Agreements Act in 2004…Under the provision of Punjab Reorganization Act, 1966, as per the Central Government’s order dated March 24, 1976, 3.5 MAF water was allocated to Haryana out of the surplus water of Ravi-Beas. Due to non-completion of SYL canal, Haryana is using only 1.62 MAF of water. Punjab is illegally using about 1.9 MAF of water from Haryana’s share by not completing the SYL canal in its region, he added.
He added, “Due to this attitude of Punjab, Haryana is not able to take its 1.88 MAF share of water. Punjab and Rajasthan are using about 2600 cusecs of water from Haryana every year. If this water had reached Haryana, it would have been used to irrigate 10.08 lakh acres of land, and help thousands of farmers.”
Khattar said that due to non-availability of this water, the groundwater level in south Haryana is going down considerably. Also, state’s farmers irrigate their fields by using expensive diesel and running tubewells with electricity, which incurs an additional burden of Rs 100 to Rs 150 crore every year.
Haryana Gets 14.10 MAF Water, Punjab Only 12.63 MAF: Punjab CM
Strongly presenting Punjab’s case before the Centre, Chief Minister Mann categorically said that the state does not have even a single drop of water to share with Haryana. “More than 78 percent of our 150 blocks are in extreme dark zone due to depletion of groundwater table, so Punjab can’t afford to share its water with any other state,” said Mann after the meeting.
He said that at time when the “anti-Punjab” agreement for SYL canal was inked, Punjab was getting 18.56 MAF of water which has now been reduced to 12.63 MAF. He further pointed out that Haryana is currently getting 14.10 MAF of water from Satluj, Yamuna, and other rivulets whereas Punjab is getting only 12.63 MAF.
No SYL, Talk About YSL: Mann
Calling to change the nomenclature and proposal of the project, the Chief Minister contended that instead of Satluj Yamuna Link (SYL) canal, the project should be now conceived as Yamuna Satluj Link (YSL). “The Satluj river has already dried up and there is no question of sharing even a single drop of water from it. Rather, water from Ganga and Yamuna should be supplied to Punjab through Satluj river,” he added.
Mann added that this is the “only viable alternative” which can be considered in the wake of the alarming situation of water scarcity in Punjab. “Despite being smaller in area, Haryana is getting more water than Punjab; and ironically, it is demanding more water at the cost of Punjab. In wake of this fact, how can we give water to Haryana if our own fields are starving for it,” argued Mann.
“It is ironic that due to availability of surplus water, Haryana is today encouraging the sowing of paddy in its districts. However, on the other hand, Punjab, which is battling for saving water, is appealing to the farmers to adopt less water guzzling crops,” said Mann, adding that though the state’s farmers have made the country self-reliant by producing record paddy, they have over-exploited Punjab’s only available natural resource in terms of water.
He bemoaned that in all the water agreements across the globe, a clause is mentioned that the agreement will be reviewed after 25 years in wake of climate changes. “However, SYL agreement is the only exception in which no such clause has been mentioned,” he argued, describing it as “gross injustice” with Punjab. The then government at the Centre and Punjab leadership was responsible for this “sin”, he added.
Will Defend State’s Interest in SC Too: Mann
The Chief Minister said that the state government will defend the interests of the state well before the Apex court too. He said that no stone will be left unturned for safeguarding the rights of the state. Bhagwant Mann said that the Haryana was the younger brother of state but Punjab has no excess water to share with it.