Bharatpur parched as Haryana, UP farmers ‘steal’ Yamuna water

Farmers in Bharatpur are waiting for canal water for a long time for cultivation. About 70% of groundwater in the district is saline and unfit for irrigation.

Irrigation department officials are worried about Bharatpur not getting water from the Gurgaon canal because of theft by farmers in Haryana and Uttar Pradesh.

Desperate for water, farmers in Bharatpur are setting up bore tube wells on the dry canal beds for water. The irrigation department gives them notices from time to time.(HT Photo)

The officials raised their concern at the meeting of Upper Yamuna River Board in Delhi on May 18. The board officials agreed to form vigilance teams to stop the theft of water, said irrigation superintendent engineer (Bharatpur) Phool Singh Meena.

“We requested the board to stop the theft of canal water and release of adequate water for the district,” said Meena.

Farmers in Bharatpur are waiting for canal water for a long time for cultivation. About 70% of groundwater in the district is saline and unfit for irrigation.

Five states — Rajasthan, Haryana, Uttar Pradesh, Delhi and Himachal Pradesh – signed a pact on May 12, 1994, for release 1,280 cusecs of Yamuna water through the Gurgaon canal. According to the pact between Rajasthan and Haryana governments, Bharatpur receives 500 cusecs of water every day through Gurgaon canal from Haryana.

Two canals carrying Yamuna water enter Bharatpur – the first is Gurgaon canal, which enters Bharatpur through Jurahara in the Mewat region; and the second is the Bharatpur feeder, which enters through Ageng in Uttar Pradesh’s Agra.

The Gurgaon canal from Haryana is 52 kilometre long.

The Central Water Commission proposed Rs 444 crore for construction of the 110-km-long canal from Jurahara in Bharatpur border of Haryana to Rupwas on the Uttar Pradesh border during the pact. The proposal had been sent to the commission for its approval. The first phase of the canal starts at Jurahara located on the Haryana border to Sinsini village and second from Sinsini to Rupwas.

Meanwhile desperate for water, farmers in Bharatpur are setting up bore tube wells on the dry canal beds for water. The irrigation department gives them notices from time to time.