In a twist in the perennial water dispute between Haryana and Punjab, the Nayab Singh Saini-led Haryana government has now urged the Bhakra Beas Management Board (BBMB) and the Punjab government to slash 2,500 cusecs of its canal water supply, citing Haryana’s reduced demand due to incessant rains.
In a letter on August 29, the chief engineer of the Haryana Irrigation and Water Resources Department made this request to the BBMB, which then communicated it to the Punjab government.
In its letter, the BJP-led Haryana government stated that the current water supply to the state would put pressure on its water resources due to continuous rainfall. The letter stated that heavy rainfall has diminished the need for irrigation and drinking water in the state, prompting a request to reduce the water flow through the canal network.
Punjab has also been grappling with floods. On Tuesday, the Bhagwant Mann-led AAP government declared all of Punjab’s 23 districts as flood-hit. A total of 1,400 villages have been deluged, displacing 3.54 lakh people, according to Punjab Revenue Minister Hardeep Singh Mundian. The government machinery has been undertaking rescue and relief operations across the state. The water levels in the Ravi, Beas, and Sutlej rivers are dangerously high, with concerns over potential embankment breaches.
The BBMB has yet to respond to the Haryana government’s letter.
Past rows
The issue of water sharing is decades-old for Punjab and Haryana. Haryana has been pushing for the Satluj Yamuna Link canal, with Punjab opposing it.
As per current agreements, water from Sutlej and Beas rivers is released to Punjab, Haryana and Rajasthan every year in a cycle starting May 21 and ending May 20 of the next year. The water allocation is made by the BBMB to Punjab (5.512 million acre feet), Haryana (2.987 MAF) and Rajasthan (3.398 MAF).
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Haryana gets water through the Bhakra Main Line (BML) from the Nangal dam.
On April 24 this year, Haryana sought an extra 4,500 cusecs water from Punjab, saying that its population was going without drinking water. CM Bhagwant Mann declined it, claiming that Haryana had already used 103% of its water share.
As Punjab refused to share extra water with Haryana, the BBMB moved the Punjab and Haryana High Court. At that time, the AAP volunteers led by Punjab minister Harjot Bains locked the gates of the Beas dam on May 8. The activists had also locked up BBMB chairperson Manoj Tripathi at a guest house in Nangal.
The standoff escalated when the BBMB authorised the additional release of water to Haryana, prompting Punjab to boycott the Board’s meetings and deploy police at the dam sites.
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On May 6, the high court directed Punjab to comply with the BBMB’s decision and restrained interference in its operations. Punjab’s subsequent pleas for recall or modification were dismissed by the high court on May 26 and June 7, with the court affirming the BBMB’s authority under the Punjab Reorganisation Act, 1966.
New standoff
CM Mann has not reacted to Haryana’s fresh letter yet, but several AAP leaders in Punjab are upset over it.
Already under fire over its handling of the flood crisis, the AAP dispensation views Haryana’s latest request as a “selfish” move. “Just a few weeks ago, they wanted more water. Now, Punjab is flooded. They want less water. Is Punjab only there to suffer?” asked Aman Arora, the AAP’s Punjab chief who is also a minister in the Mann Cabinet.
Barinder Goyal, Punjab’s Water Resources Minister, raised concern over Haryana’s moves. “It is ironic that Haryana Chief Minister Nayab Singh Saini has written to CM Mann to offer help during floods. Now, this would have helped had they accepted more water during floods. But Punjab is to face the fury of waters – and Haryana wants to take extra water only when even Punjab farmers do not have it,” he said.
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Former minister Kuldeep Dhaliwal said that Punjab was being left to fend for itself. “Whenever Punjab and its farmers need help, nobody helps us. When we did not have water, they (Haryana) wanted extra water. They wanted to rob the state of water then when farmers needed it the most. Now they want less water than their share. When it is about a calamity… Punjab should face it alone.”