Meet on SYL remains inconclusive as Punjab, Haryana CMs stick to their stands

New Delhi, Jan 4 (PTI) Punjab and Haryana chief ministers met Union Jal Shakti Minister Gajendra Singh Shekhawat on Wednesday to discuss the contentious Sutlej-Yamuna Link (SYL) canal issue but a resolution remained elusive as both the CMs stick to their stands.

While Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann said his state does not have “even a single drop of water” to share, his Haryana counterpart Manohar Lal Khattar said the full construction of the canal and getting water through it was a matter of “right” for his state.

Khattar also said Haryana will inform the Supreme Court that Punjab was not abiding by its order in the matter. “Instead of discussing the issue of the construction of the canal, the Punjab chief minister kept on saying there is no water to share,” Khattar said in a statement later.

The Supreme Court had in September nudged the two chief ministers to meet and work out an amicable solution to the SYL canal row.

During the meeting on Wednesday, Shekhawat asked the two chief ministers to come up with a solution, the sources said.

But Mann said, “More than 78 per cent of our 150 blocks are in extreme dark zone due to depletion of ground water table. So Punjab can’t afford to share its water with any other state.”

“The state does not have even a single drop of water to share with Haryana,” he said in a statement, and demanded his state should get water from Yamuna river in Haryana instead.

“No SYL (Sutlej-Yamuna Link), Haryana should talk about YSL (Yamuna-Sutlej Link),” he said.

Mann also sought setting up of a fresh tribunal to assess water available with the state, while Khattar said his state has the right to get water from Ravi and Beas rivers by the full construction of the SYL Canal, sources said.

The SYL canal has been a bone of contention between Punjab and Haryana for decades. Shekhawat called the meeting after both the chief ministers failed to reach a consensus over the issue.

Punjab has been maintaining that the quantum of water flowing through Ravi and Beas rivers had come down considerably and therefore, their water volume should be reassessed.

“Both sides presented their arguments and the Jal Shakti minister asked them to come out with a mutual solution of the matter,” a source said.

The SYL canal was conceptualised for effective allocation of water from Ravi and Beas rivers. The project envisaged a 214-km canal, of which 122 km was to be in Punjab and 92 km in Haryana. Haryana has completed the project in its territory. Though Punjab took up the work in 1982, it was later shelved.