The Supreme Court has asked Attorney General KK Venugopal to look into the prospect of an amicable settlement of the decades-old dispute between Punjab, Haryana and Himachal Pradesh over payment of compensation relating to the Bhakra-Nangal and Beas power projects.
The apex court directed the warring States to depute some responsible officers on the date to be fixed by Venugopal for adjudication of the long-drawn dispute in the top court.
"We request KK Venugopal, Attorney General, to go through the matter to find an amicable settlement regarding the liability of the payment of the States of Punjab and Haryana to the State of Himachal Pradesh.
The respective States may depute some responsible officer on the date to be fixed by KK Venugopal for this purpose," a bench of Justices RK Agrawal and AM Sapre said.
The current dispute is an offshoot of the September 2011 verdict of the apex court in an original suit filed by Himachal Pradesh in 1996, seeking 7.19 percent of the total power generated from three hydro power projects, Bhakra- Nangal-Beas Projects, situated in its territory with effect from November 1, 1966.