Chandigarh: While the Supreme Court on Wednesday asked the Centre to conduct a survey of the land meant for the Sutlej-Yamuna Link canal in Punjab to ascertain the status of its construction, the ground reality is that nearly 90% of the land acquired for the SYL has been denotified and returned to original owners – farmers.
The then SAD-BJP government, led by chief minister Parkash Singh Badal, on November 13, 2016, had de-notified 4,627 acres (of the 5,376 acres acquired in Rupnagar, Mohali, Patiala and Fatehgarh Sahib districts) and returned it to farmers free of cost. The remaining land was not returned as it was meant for distributaries and minors channels from the main canal to fields.
The acquired land, falling in 202 villages of the four districts, belonged to 2,051 farmers. As the SYL land was acquired between 1977 and 1982, and the Haryana government too had pitched in to pay the compensation, the then SAD-BJP government on November 16, 2016, even sent a cheque of ₹191.75 crore (in the name of the chief minister) to the Haryana government. Haryana never accepted the cheque.
The SYL canal was conceptualised for effective allocation of water from the Ravi and Beas rivers. The project envisaged a 214-km canal, of which a 122-km stretch was to be constructed in Punjab and the remaining 92 km in Haryana. Haryana has completed the project in its territory but Punjab, which launched the construction work in 1982, shelved it subsequently.
{{/usCountry}}The SYL canal was conceptualised for effective allocation of water from the Ravi and Beas rivers. The project envisaged a 214-km canal, of which a 122-km stretch was to be constructed in Punjab and the remaining 92 km in Haryana. Haryana has completed the project in its territory but Punjab, which launched the construction work in 1982, shelved it subsequently.
{{/usCountry}}Then secretary, irrigation, Kahan Singh Pannu (now retired), had signed the notification on de-notifying the SYL land falling in Punjab. “I remember how most of the senior officials were wary of signing the notification at that time but Punjab’s interest was paramount for us. I visited the Haryana CM’s office on November 16 to hand over the cheque,” said Pannu while talking to HT.
The government denotifed the land via quasi-judicial orders, using specific provisions in the law stating that a land acquired for a project can be denotified if the project ceased to exist or was delayed indefinitely.
The Punjab revenue department, in just next two weeks, completed the entire process of denotification and returned the land to the farmers after mutation.
Retired special chief secretary, Punjab, KBS Sidhu, who as then financial commissioner, revenue, a key man behind speedy implementation of the de-notification order, said: “It was indeed a master stroke of the then government. Everyone was worried that any order to de-notify the land may amount to contempt of the Supreme Court. However, backed by the council of ministers, CM Badal immediately gave go ahead to the plan,” Sidhu said.
Officials, who dealt with the case at that time, claimed that when Haryana moved the apex court to object to de-notification of land by Punjab, the Badal government, through its lawyers --- Ram Jethmalani and Harish Salve --- was able to defend its move.
“On November 30, the apex court asked Punjab to maintain status quo but did not say anything about the de-notification,” said a senior retired IAS officer of Punjab, who did not want to be named.
In March, 2016, the Punjab assembly even passed the Punjab SYL Land (Transfer of Proprietary Rights) Bill, 2016 but it never got the assent of the governor.
Mining mafia made easy money: Farmers
Farmers say most part of the canal is of no use as the mining mafia has dug it up at various places to make easy money. The incomplete canal became a money-minting venture for the Punjab mining mafia, which dug up earth and sold it, they said. In the fatehgarh Sahib and Patiala district, the canal area is totally damaged.
Gursharan Virk, who got back 8 acres back in 2016, said he is tilling the land. “Many farmers got the land back. However, there was a problem. The SYL base was made of concrete and thus it was very difficult to dig it,” he added. “Levelling of the canal was a costly affair and farmers had neither adequate money nor machinery for it,” added Virk.
Haryana’s take
Haryana advocate general BR Mahajan said the Supreme Court has held that the its decree of January 15, 2002, and June 4, 2004, to complete the remaining portion of the Sutlej-Yamuna Link (SYL) canal cannot be undone by a legislative or executive action. “ When the apex court has held that an inter-state issue cannot be dictated by a unilateral action of enacting the controversial Punjab Termination of Water Agreements Act of 2004, held illegal by the apex court, any subsequent unilateral action is a non-starter,” the advocate general said.
(With inputs from HTC Patiala)