Gang Canal’s 100-year celebration function in Punjab cancelled; Union minister called back

The BJP-led Centre has cancelled the celebration of the 100th anniversary of the Gang Canal, which carries water from Punjab to parts of Rajasthan, scheduled for Friday.

The decision follows opposition to the event and concerns over potential law-and-order issues and rising political tensions.

The Gang Canal marks its centenary on December 5, commemorating 100 years since it began channeling water from the Sutlej near Hussainiwala in Ferozepur, Punjab, to Bikaner in Rajasthan.

Union Minister of Law and Justice and Bikaner MP Arjun Ram Meghwal, who was to preside over the function, reached Amritsar by plane on Thursday evening and was en route to Ferozepur when the Prime Minister’s Office asked him to return, sources said.

Sources in the BJP and Punjab Police revealed that the celebrations risked triggering unrest, as farmers and political parties were preparing protests against the event. Intelligence agencies warned that the minister’s visit could provoke roadblocks and protests once news of the function became public late on Thursday.

Some senior BJP leaders have also flagged to the BJP central leadership that the celebrations can turn sour for the party in Punjab.

With the BJP already under scrutiny over attempts to alter the administrative structures of Panjab University and the Union Territory of Chandigarh, the Prime Minister’s Office intervened to avoid further backlash.

The Punjab Congress vocally opposed the event. Leader of the Opposition Partap Bajwa condemned the BJP for what he described as “an insensitive and politically provocative” decision to celebrate the canal’s centenary on Punjab soil.

Bajwa said, “The Gang Canal was constructed by the British as a reward to the Maharaja of Bikaner for his loyalty, at the cost of Punjab’s water resources. It was never a gift to Punjab but a political favour granted by foreign rulers, symbolising decades of water diversion and exploitation of Punjab’s natural resources.”

Punjab Pradesh Congress Committee chief Amarinder Singh Raja Warring also criticised the celebrations. He pointed out that farmers in Fazilka, Abohar and Muktsar struggle to receive even a few hours of canal water daily, while the BJP treats the centenary as a festival.

Warring said, “Punjab’s water crisis cannot be papered over with staged events and speeches. The BJP is glorifying a canal that historically drained Punjab’s waters, while our fields remain parched. We are not against acknowledging history, but against hypocrisy. First, safeguard Punjab’s water rights, fix the canal system, stop water theft, and ensure clean water for every farmer—only then celebrate.”

Conversely, senior BJP leader Rana Gurmit Singh Sodhi, who unsuccessfully contested the Lok Sabha election from Ferozepur, defended the canal’s significance to Punjab. He called it the “Saviour of Ferozepur”, noting it was the only water source for Bikaner and nearby areas.

Sodhi also cited Stanley Wolpert’s book Shameful Flight: The Last Years of the British Empire in India, which explains that Sir Cyril Radcliffe, chairman of the Punjab Boundary Commission, initially allotted Ferozepur and Zira tehsils to Pakistan, which would have placed the canal’s headworks under Pakistani control. Due to the canal’s geographical importance, these areas remained in India after Partition.

The Gang Canal project, inaugurated on December 5, 1925, and named after Maharaja Ganga Singh of Bikaner, was built to address famine and irrigation problems in the Bikaner region. Stretching 1,398 kilometres including distributaries, the canal runs along the northeastern Indo-Pakistan border and remains a vital water source for both regions.