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Chandigarh: Bhakra-Beas Management Board has released 26840 cusecs of excess water from Bhakra Dam for its partner states Punjab, Haryana, Rajasthan, Delhi and Chandigarh. Neighbors have been alerted. While there is satisfaction among farmers’ organizations regarding this decision, political parties have appealed to the state government to protect the interests of Punjab first on the issue of water.
Bharati Kisan Union (Ekta-Ugrahan) welcomed the said decision of BBMB and said that the farmers of the neighboring states including Punjab also need water at this time and there should not be politics on the BBMB giving extra water.
General Secretary of the Union Sukhdev Singh Kokri Kalan said that with this decision, Punjab has also got additional water, but the worrying thing is that Punjab is not fully using the allotted share, while the Punjab government has to use its share of water. Tools should be prepared.
On the other hand, Shiromani Akali Dal’s senior leader Dr. Daljit Singh Cheema said that Punjab is already struggling with water shortage. Giving gifts like surplus water to the states. Punjab is no longer in the hands of those who will work for the good of Punjabis. All those fighting for the waters of Punjab will have to unite again.
It may be mentioned that most of the dams including Bhakra under BBMB have been filled due to continuous rain in the hilly areas, in view of which the board has taken this step, but with this decision there are chances of political controversy in Punjab. Most of the surplus water released from Bhakra is going to Haryana and Rajasthan as Punjab is not fully utilizing its 51 percent share in BBMB and the current surplus water is also set to go to Haryana and Rajasthan.
A BBMB official said that in the technical committee meeting held on May 31, it was decided to release water as per the requirement of the participating states. This step was taken because the participating states demanded water for irrigation. Water is being discharged through turbine passages and no spillway will be opened. Due to this, the people living on the rivers and their banks should panic and avoid any rumours.
Himachal Pradesh has taken 359 cusecs of water for free since February 23, 1978. Punjab has never opposed it while Himachal Pradesh has no allocation from BBMB. Under the Bhakra Nangal Agreement 1959 and the Inter-State Agreement dated 31 December 1981, the states of Punjab, Haryana and Rajasthan share the waters of the BBMB. In its 15 meetings, the board continued to give free water to Himachal, saying it was in good faith. While the water situation of Punjab is already in a state of deplorable condition.
According to BBMB officials, as per the 1960 decision, the share of water has been fixed for the member states. Under this, Punjab receives maximum water from Sutlej River at 57.88 million acre feet (MAF) and Ravi at 30 MAF. After this, Haryana gets 32.31 MAF from Sutlej and 21 MAF from Ravi. Rajasthan receives 9.81 MAF of water from Sutlej and 49 MAF from Ravi. According to information, Punjab does not have any system to store or use excess water. In such a situation, a major portion of fresh surplus water will reach Haryana and Rajasthan.
Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann had recently promised to increase water supply from Punjab to the constituency state of Rajasthan. Last week, Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann had appealed to the Rajasthan government not to repair the Indira Gandhi Canal at this time and let water reach its share. The Chief Minister had said that if Rajasthan needs water, they can only release a fixed portion to it as Punjab is already finding it difficult to meet the needs of farmers.
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