Abhishek Vij
The Satluj-Yamuna Link (SYL) canal issue has been a point of contention between Punjab and Haryana since the time of Chief Minister Pratap Singh Kairon. The issue intensified during Captain Amarinder Singh’s tenure. The Amarinder government had the Punjab Assembly pass a resolution rejecting the proposal to provide water to Haryana through the SYL canal. The matter is currently before the Supreme Court.
The Supreme Court has directed Punjab and Haryana to resolve the dispute over the link canal and water supply from Punjab through mutual dialogue, failing which the court will have to make a decision. Six meetings have already been held between Punjab and Haryana on this issue. The sixth meeting took place in Chandigarh between Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Singh Mann and Haryana Chief Minister Nayab Singh Saini. Besides the two Chief Ministers, the Irrigation Ministers, Chief Secretaries, and senior officials from both states were also present at the meeting. Although the atmosphere was described as very cordial, as far as the outcome of the meeting is concerned, both Chief Ministers remained firm on their respective positions.
Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann said that Punjab does not have a single drop of water to spare for Haryana. He stated that the availability of water in the rivers has decreased in the past year. Water sharing, providing water to Haryana, or releasing water into the canal can only be done according to this availability. If Punjab’s own needs are not being met, how can it give water to another state? Punjab’s Principal Secretary, Krishan Kumar, also presented figures on available water and said that there is not enough water even for Punjab’s irrigation needs. Despite this, Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann said, “We are the inheritors of Bhai Kanhaiya’s legacy; we even offer water to our enemies, and Haryana is our brother.”
Haryana Chief Minister Nayab Singh Saini said that the construction of the canal on the Haryana side has been completed. Punjab should provide Haryana with its rightful share of water, otherwise, the situation could spiral out of control. However, since the atmosphere was cordial, it was decided in the 30-35 minute meeting that officials from both states would now deliberate further on the matter to find a suitable solution and would keep their respective governments informed. It was clarified that this action should not only be taken close to the Supreme Court hearing date, but also that meetings should be held independently once or twice a month, and a report submitted.
The meeting then concluded in a cordial atmosphere. Our view is that what kind of report will the officers even give? The opposition in Punjab has already started creating a ruckus, claiming that Punjab doesn’t have any water to give, but the Chief Minister is showing flexibility on Punjab’s stance. We believe the Chief Minister is being practical. He doesn’t want to create unnecessary bitterness.
His suggestion, which he made in previous meetings, that after stopping the water supply to Pakistan, the surplus water from the Chenab and Jhelum rivers should be given to Punjab, Haryana, and Rajasthan, might be more effective, because the situation now is that we are not going to revive the Indus Waters Treaty that was broken with Pakistan. However, a decision on this can only be made in a high-level meeting. Perhaps that is why the matter has been handed over to the officers, even after holding a meeting as per the Supreme Court’s order. Whatever the decision, it should be based on a comprehensive water policy.
There is nothing wrong with giving the water from the Chenab and Jhelum rivers to the drought-affected states. For now, Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Singh Mann has very wisely left the issue for the officers to consider in this meeting.