SKM leaders seek Fazilka SSP’s intervention to curb ‘theft’ of Gang Canal water

Our Correspondent

Abohar, August 9

Leaders of the Samyukt Kisan Morcha (SKM) from Sriganganagar today inspected the Gang Canal that passes through Fazilka district and met SSP Varinder Singh Brar to seek his intervention to stop the large-scale theft of water from the canal in the district.

The deputation included Kisan Sangharsh Committee district president Amar Singh Bishnoi, spokesperson Subhash Sehgal, former Gang Canal Project Chairman Gurbalpal Singh Sandhu, Kisan Army’s Raman Randhawa and Maninder Singh Mann.

SKM leaders said that the SSP assured them that a patrol team would be formed to inspect the canal and that every possible effort would be made to stop water theft. The deputation presented photos and videos of water theft taking place in the district to the SSP. They demanded strict action against those who had been stealing water for long.

Sehgal told The Tribune that they started the tour from Khakhan Headworks located on Rajasthan-Punjab border and found that only 1,200 cusecs of water was being received. Not only is there large-scale theft of water in the Gang Canal, but due to the poor condition of the canal, there are also huge transit losses.

He said that at many places, state’s farmers had installed pipes to steal canal water. They had also been granted permanent electricity connections by the Punjab State Power Corporation Limited staff to run motors to draw water in violation of rules, he added.

The SKM leaders alleged that neither the Rajasthan nor the Punjab Government’s irrigation departments had taken effective steps to stop the theft. As a result, farmers of Sriganganagar district were not getting adequate water from Punjab.

They said concrete measures should be taken to ensure that the farmers of Sriganganagar district got water as per the sanctioned capacity of Gang Canal that had on an average been getting 2,500 cusecs of water.