Never had surplus water after ‘unjust’ Indus treaty, say parties

Political parties on Friday contended that the Centre had “wrongfully” shared Punjab waters with neighbouring states, from where the three rivers didn’t flow, as it felt that the state had surplus supply despite an “unjust” Indus Waters Treaty.

The views were shared during an all-party meeting chaired by Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann to prepare a strategy to “protect” the state’s right over its river waters. According to sources, the discussion brought to the fore the emotive issue of why Punjabis think that their rightful share in river waters was being “snatched”.

A source said the leaders stressed that while working on the action plan to safeguard Punjab’s interests, historical facts needed to be understood in a larger perspective. After the meeting, Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) spokesperson Daljit Singh Cheema told reporters that the Indus Waters Treaty, 1960, was signed with Pakistan at the cost of Punjab.

He said the share in the Ravi and Beas was given to non-riparian states such as Rajasthan while the issue of charges required to be paid by these states was never taken up.

“In the Punjab Reorganisation Act, 1966, Section 78 allowed the Centre to determine the allocation of river waters among the states. This led to biased sharing of the river water between riparian and non-riparian states,” he said.

He said former CM Parkash Singh Badal had filed a suit in the Supreme Court in 1979, challenging the provision.

“But in 1981, former PM Indira Gandhi prevailed upon then CM Darbara Singh to withdraw this case and agreed to the construction of the SYL canal,” he added.

Officials handling the inter-state river issue pointed out the 1955 Nanda Agreement, which was actually a series of agreements related to the sharing of waters of the Ravi and Beas. The initial agreement was reached in 1955, involving the chief ministers of Punjab, Haryana and Rajasthan. This agreement was revisited and modified in 1976 and 1981, culminating in the Rajiv-Longowal Accord of 1985.

Senior Congress leader and former Punjab Speaker Rana KP Singh said the Centre, over the years, carried a “wrong impression” that Punjab, referred to as the land of five rivers, had “surplus water”.

“While canal water has reached Barmer, some areas of Punjab are still crying for water. Since 1955, Punjab has been a victim of betrayals,” he added. “The day the Indus Waters Treaty was signed with Pakistan, Punjab was subjected to injustice. The treaty was unjust to Punjab as it denied the state water from three rivers — the Jhelum, Chenab and Indus,” Rana added.

He also alleged that the Bhakra Beas Management Board (BBMB), a body controlled by the Union Jal Shakti Ministry, was being “manipulated and misused against Punjab”.

“Despite Punjab’s share in all assets standing at 60:40 against the rest of the member states, Punjab has only one vote in the board,” he said, adding that when it comes to voting, Haryana, HP, Rajasthan, Delhi and the Centre “gang up” to “isolate” Punjab. “The BBMB Act should also be challenged,” he added.

Punjab BJP chief Sunil Jakhar said the long-pending issue should be looked into from a “practical purpose” and on the basis of ground reality.

THE WATER ROUTE TO STATES

• From the Nangal Dam and the Ropar headworks, the Bhakra Mainline Canal (BMC) and the Sirhind canal, and their sub-networks, carry water to parts of Punjab and Haryana
• From the Harike and Ferozepur headworks, the Rajasthan Feeder, Sirhind Feeder and Bikaner Canal branch out for supplying water to north-western Rajasthan
• The BMC joins the Rajasthan Feeder a little South of the border with Punjab, forming the Indira Gandhi Canal that goes up to the Bikaner-Jaisalmer area.

Dispute timeline

Indus Waters Treaty, 1960

The Indus Waters Treaty of 1960 allocated waters of the Ravi, Beas and Sutlej to India, while Pakistan received exclusive rights to the Indus, Jhelum, and Chenab. This laid the foundation of ongoing dispute

Reorganisation of states, 1966

Haryana was carved out of Punjab. Haryana was given a share in the Ravi and Beas waters. To implement it, the Sutlej-Yamuna Link (SYL) canal was planned

SYL canal: A bone of contention

To give Haryana its share of allocated water, the foundation of the SYL canal was laid in 1982 by then Prime Minister Indira Gandhi at Kapoori village of Patiala district

Rajiv-Longowal Accord, 1985

In 1985, then PM Rajiv Gandhi signed a historic accord with then SAD president Harchand Singh Longowal, promising creation of a tribunal to reassess the water distribution. This led to the formation of the Eradi Tribunal, headed by a Supreme Court judge

Termination of agreements in 2004

Former CM Amarinder Singh brought the Punjab Termination of Water Agreement Act in 2004. This aimed to terminate obligations under all agreements

Denotification of Canal land

In 2016, the Punjab Government led by then CM Parkash Singh Badal got passed the Sutlej-Yamuna Link Canal Land (Transfer of Propriety Rights) Bill in the Assembly, denotifying 5,376 acres acquired for the project. However, the apex court stayed the Bill