Guv of Haryana, Punjab in piquant situation over SYL issue

Governor Kaptan Singh Solanki today said Haryana government is committed to obtaining its legitimate share of Ravi-Beas waters and completion of Satluj -Yamuna Link (SYL) canal, an issue on which the state is locked in a tussle with Punjab for over six decades.
The reference to the issue in his address to Haryana Assembly came a week after his speech in the Punjab Assembly where he had stated that Punjab's right on waters of its rivers should be "safeguarded".
A governor by convention reads out the speech prepared by the state government. With Solanki being incharge of both Punjab and Haryana, it has led to a piquant situation.

In his address in Punjab Assembly, he had appealed to the Centre to remove "discrimination" on instances like distribution of waters with neighboring states, Punjabi speaking areas and transfer of Chandigarh to give "justice" to the border state.
As he addressed the Haryana legislature, the Punjab Assembly this afternoon in a neighboring hall within the complex passed a bill introduced by the Parkash Singh Badal led SAD-BJP government to denotify the land which was acquired for the construction of the SYL canal in Punjab to carry Haryana's share of Ravi Beas water.
The proposed measure has been slammed by Haryana.

Solanki, delivering thea.

Solanki, delivering the Governor's Address on the opening day of budget session of Haryana Assembly here this afternoon, said, "The concerted efforts made by the government to secure early hearing of the Presidential Reference, which has been pending for the last more than 11 years, have borne fruit and the matter has now been taken up for regular hearing by the Supreme Court."
He said, "The Hansi-Butana Canal, which was constructed to carry Haryana's own share of Ravi-Beas waters from Bhakra Command to Western Yamuna Canal and Lift Command has not been operationalised due to the stay order granted by the apex court."

The Governor said that the cross examination of witnesses in the matter was completed on February 2, 2016 and the arguments are likely to start shortly.
In Punjab Assembly on March 8, Solanki had said the state
government had been seeking a solution to the river water issue through implementation of the nationally and internationally accepted Riparian Principle on the distribution of river waters.
"This principle has been implemented to resolve river water disputes throughout the country," he said.
Noting that "injustice and discrimination" was meted out to Punjab on issue of its river waters, he said the people of state have also been heavily discriminated against brazen refusal of Centre to transfer its capital city Chandigarh to Punjab.

"Several Punjabi speaking areas left out of the state at the time of re-organization in 1966 have still not been included into Punjab," he added.
Recently, days after the Supreme Court began hearing the Sutlej Yamuna Link (SYL) Canal dispute upon Presidential Reference, Haryana Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar had expressed the hope the Supreme Court's decision on SYL Canal would be in favour of the state.
While Khattar leads BJP government in Haryana, the party is an ally of SAD in Punjab.
As per the agreement of 1955, signed between the states of Punjab, Patiala and East Punjab States Union (Pepsu), Jammu and Kashmir and Rajasthan, Punjab (including Pepsu) was allocated 7.20 Million Acre Feet (MAF) surplus waters of the Ravi and Beas estimated at 15.85 MAF, based on flow series of 1921-45, excluding pro-partition use, Rajasthan was allocated 8.0 MAF and Jammu and Kashmir 0.65 MAF.

Haryana was carved out on the reorganization of erstwhile state of Punjab on November 1, 1966.
As per Section 78 of the Reorganization Act of 1966, the right to receive and to utilise the waters available for distribution, as a result of the Bhakra Nangal Project and Beas Project, became the right of the successor states in such proportion as may be made by an agreement entered into by the said states after consultation with the central government.
This Section also provided that if no such agreement was entered into within two years of the appointed day, the Central government may by orders determine the shares of the states having regard to the purpose of the projects.

Since the state of Punjab and Haryana could not arrive at any amicable settlement, Government of India by its notification dated March 24, 1976, determined the distribution of waters of Ravi and Beas among the states of Haryana, Punjab and Delhi.
(Reopens DES28)
Due to continuous delay in the completion of canal,
Haryana is unable to fully utilize about 3 lakh hectares of irrigation potential already created in the state and is losing incremental agricultural production of over 8 lakh tones per annum amounting to several crore of rupees besides having drinking water scarcity in several parts of the State.

The Supreme Court passed an order on January 15, 2002 and directed Punjab Government that SYL Canal in Punjab portion should be completed within a period of one year.
In case state of Punjab fails to accomplish the task within the stipulated period, then the Union Government should get the work done through its own agencies as expeditiously as possible.
Punjab enacted the Punjab Termination of Agreements Act, 2004 just two days before the July 15,2004 deadline when the Centre was to take over physical possession of the canal from Punjab Irrigation Department and hand over the construction to the CPWD for completion.

The state had taken the stand that endeavor should be to determine the share of Punjab rivers on acknowledged principles of distribution and allocation between the "riparian" states, namely, on the basis of the equitable share of each state.
Interestingly, none of the states that have been a party to the unsolved issue is a riparian state, except Punjab and Jammu and Kashmir. The other non-riparian states are Haryana, Rajasthan and Delhi.