Bhakra water row: After Punjab, Haryana to hold all-party meet today

The announcement on Friday comes hours after the AAP government in the neighbouring state held a similar meeting that saw parties putting up a united stand on the issue and contemplating calling on Prime Minister Narendra Modi in the coming days.

Haryana chief minister Nayab Singh Saini has called an all-party meeting here on Saturday to build a political consensus on state’s ongoing dispute with Punjab over allocation of Bhakra waters.

The meeting called by the BJP government will be held here under the chairmanship of Saini to discuss the water-related issues in the wake of Punjab’s move, officials said. (HT File)

The announcement on Friday comes hours after the AAP government in the neighbouring state held a similar meeting that saw parties putting up a united stand on the issue and contemplating calling on Prime Minister Narendra Modi in the coming days.

The meeting called by the BJP government will be held here under the chairmanship of Saini to discuss the water-related issues in the wake of Punjab’s move, officials said.

Apart from the ruling BJP, other parties which have been invited for the meeting are the Congress, the INLD, the JJP, the AAP, the BSP and the CPI(M).

Meanwhile, speaking to reporters in Panchkula on Friday, chief minister Saini strongly condemned the Punjab’s ruling AAP for “politicising” the water issue.

He assured, “As the head of Haryana, I guarantee that if the people of Punjab ever need drinking water, we will install tubewells, extract water from our groundwater, and provide it to them. I assure you that no person in Punjab will remain thirsty.”

The chief minister asserted that, based on historical records, Haryana is only requesting the water it has consistently received. “Water is a natural resource. If this political maneuvering continues, the water will be wasted and flow into Pakistan, which has been shedding the blood of our unarmed citizens,” said Nayab Singh Saini.

Saini reiterated that Haryana is only asking for the share of water it previously received, nothing more. “We are also seeking the SYL water as per the agreement. The Supreme Court has ruled that this is our right,” he said.

A fresh row had erupted over the issue of water sharing between the two neighbours, with the Punjab government refusing to release more water to the BJP-ruled Haryana.

Punjab chief minister Bhagwant Mann, who chaired the all-party meeting on the water issue here on Friday, has asserted that his government will not allow the release of more water to the neighbouring state, claiming it has already utilised 103% of its allocated share.

Mann had said the Punjab government, as a humanitarian gesture, had already generously allotted 4,000 cusecs of water daily to Haryana since April 6.

He also hit out at the Bhakra Beas Management Board (BBMB) for its decision to release extra water to Haryana, saying such “robbery” of Punjab’s rights will not be tolerated and that the board has no right to “dictate” matters related to his state.

In the national capital, Union Home Secretary Govind Mohan chaired a high-level meeting on Friday, which advised carrying out the BBMB’s decision to release 4,500 cusecs of extra water from Bhakra dams to Haryana for the next eight days to meet the state’s urgent water requirements.

The meeting was convened to discuss the issue of implementing BBMB’s decision to meet the urgent water needs of the state and some parts of Rajasthan.

BOX

Haryana government may approach Supreme Court on water issue: Minister

Haryana irrigation and water resources minister Shruti Choudhry on Friday said the state government may approach Supreme Court over the fresh water-sharing dispute with Punjab.

Choudhry said Bhakra Beas Management Board (BBMB) allocates water to the partner states and Punjab should not raise an objection.

She also accused Punjab’s Bhagwant Mann dispensation of politicising the issue.

“We had tried to not let the matter escalate. But Mann gave it a political colour,” said Choudhry, who is also the granddaughter of former Haryana chief minister late Bansi Lal.

She said the Haryana government is fully committed to protecting the state’s legitimate share. “If this issue is not resolved, we will approach the Supreme Court. We have the complete data on Haryana’s water receipts. All the relevant facts will be presented before the court,” the minister said.