The
Supreme Court has ordered status quo on the land meant for the Sutlej-Yamuna
Link canal after Haryana alleged attempts by Punjab to alter its use by
levelling it. Despite the Supreme Court ordering the Punjab Government to
maintain a status - quo on the Sutlej - Yamuna Link Canal, the Punjab Assembly
unanimously passed a resolution refusing to compromise on its stand on the
matter. Haryana Government slammed the Punjab Government.
Background:
·
This issue
escalated when, earlier this month, the Punjab assembly passed the Punjab
Sutlej Yamuna Link Canal (Rehabilitation and Re-vesting of proprietary Rights)
Bill, 2016 to de-notify the land acquired to build the canal in Punjab.
·
Upset with this,
Haryana sought early hearing in the Supreme Court on the Presidential reference
that has been pending for around 12 years now.
·
Haryana argued
the Bill, awaiting the Governor’s assent, would negate the Supreme Court’s 2004
decree calling for unhindered construction of the canal which will give Haryana
its share of water.
Supreme Court’s
recent order:
In
its interim order, the court has appointed the Union Home Secretary and the
Chief Secretary and the Director-General of Police of Punjab as the ‘joint
receiver’ of land and other property meant for the canal till the next hearing.
About the Crisis:
What is the
Sutlej Yamuna Link (SYL) Canal, and the controversy over it?
The
creation of Haryana from the old (undivided) Punjab in 1966 threw up the
problem of giving Haryana its share of river waters. Punjab was opposed to
sharing waters of the Ravi and Beas with Haryana, citing riparian principles,
and arguing that it had no water to spare.
However,
Centre, in 1976, issued a notification allocating to Haryana 3.5 million acre
feet (MAF) out of undivided Punjab’s 7.2 MAF.
To
enable Haryana to use its share of the waters of the Sutlej and its tributary
Beas, a canal linking the Sutlej with the Yamuna, cutting across the state, was
planned. In April, 1982, Prime Minister Indira Gandhi ceremonially dug the
ground at Kapoori village in Patiala district for the construction of the
214-km Sutlej-Yamuna Link (or SYL) canal, 122 km of which was to be in Punjab,
and 92 km in Haryana.
A
tripartite agreement was also negotiated between Punjab, Haryana, and Rajasthan
in this regard.
However,
following the protests in Punjab, the Punjab Assembly passed The Punjab
Termination of Agreements Act, 2004, terminating its water-sharing agreements,
and thus jeopardising the construction of SYL in Punjab.
Other inter –
water disputes in India:
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