What is the SYL issue and why has it remained unsolved for over 50 years?

Chandigarh: The Punjab and Haryana chief ministers failed to reach a consensus on Sutlej Yamuna Link (SYL) water-sharing issue during their meeting held in Chandigarh on October 14, Friday.

While Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann categorically said his state couldn’t spare even a single drop of water, Haryana CM Manohar Lal Khattar said he was disappointed with Punjab’s stand.

“From our side, this was our final meeting. There is no reason in taking any more initiative. We will brief the centre,” Khattar told the media after the meeting.

Newsdrum explains how and why the matter has been dragging on for over 50 years.

Why did both CMs hold the Friday meeting on this issue?

The meeting was held following the direction of the Supreme Court to find an amicable solution to one of the most prolonged river water-sharing disputes in the country. During the court hearing last month on September 6, SC nudged Punjab for failing to engage in talks with Haryana over the issue. Hence, this meeting took place.

What is the precursor of the SYL dispute?

The Union government in 1955 decided to distribute the water of Ravi and Beas between Rajasthan, undivided Punjab and Jammu & Kashmir for the development of these states. At that time, the water flowing down Ravi and Beas, two major rivers emerging from the Himalayas and flowing through Punjab, was assessed at 15.85 million acre-feet (MAF). While Rajasthan was allotted 8 MAF, undivided Punjab got 7.20 MAF and J&K 0.65 MAF.

What started the dispute?

Soon after the creation of Haryana from undivided Punjab in 1966, the new state started claiming its share over Ravi and Beas rivers to meet its future water needs while citing Section 78 of the Punjab Reorganisation Act. But Punjab refused to share it, citing the riparian principle, which maintains that the water of a river belongs only to the state in which the river flows.

How did the SYL canal come into the picture?

As Punjab’s denial continued, Haryana approached the centre to claim its share. In 1976, the centre, then headed by Congress Prime Minister Indira Gandhi, issued a notification allocating to Haryana 3.5 MAF out of undivided Punjab’s 7.2 MAF share in Ravi and Beas. To implement the notification, the 212-km long Sutlej Yamuna canal link was planned for sharing the river waters between Haryana and Punjab. While 121 km of the canal was to run through Punjab, the remaining 91 km was through Haryana.

What happened after the centre’s notification?

Haryana began constructing its side of the SYL canal, which was completed four years later in 1980. At the same time, it also gave Rs 1 crore to Punjab, the first instalment of the Rs 192 crore it would give the neighbour to build the canal on its territory. However, Punjab, then headed by the Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) government did not start the work. Both states filed separate petitions in the Supreme Court in 1979, claiming their rights over the Ravi-Bears River waters.

What made Punjab start the construction?

After the return of Indira Gandhi as PM in 1980, several non-Congress governments were dismissed of which Punjab was one. In fresh assembly polls in 1980, Congress came back to power under chief minister Darbara Singh. Thereafter, Punjab, Haryana and Rajasthan entered into a new tripartite agreement in 1981 over Ravi-Beas river water sharing. After the agreement, Punjab agreed to complete its part SYL canal within two years. Both states also withdrew the petitions from the Supreme Court. On April 8, 1982, Indira Gandhi launched SYL canal construction in Punjab by laying the ground-breaking ceremony near Kapuri village in Patiala district.

What made Punjab suspend the construction?

After Indira’s groundbreaking ceremony, agitations and protests began across Punjab, plunging the state into permanent chaos. This turned into a bigger problem, resulting in operation blue star and the subsequent assassination of Indira Gandhi in 1984. A lot happened after that including a new agreement over the issue and SC judge-led tribunal, which increased the river share of both states. The work resumed under the SS Barnala-led SAD government in the late 80s but construction was stopped when two senior engineers and 35 labourers working on the canal were gunned down.

What made Punjab terminate water-sharing agreements?

The construction remained standstill for years before Haryana 1996 filed a petition regarding the completion of the canal in Punjab territory. SC in multiple orders between 2000-2004 ordered Punjab to complete the remaining portion of the canal. After Punjab’s cold response, SC in June 2004 told the centre to ask one of its agencies to take control of the canal work. But a month later, the then Chief Minister Captain Amarinder Singh enacted the Punjab Termination of Agreements Act, annulling all inter-state agreements on sharing Ravi and Beas waters with Haryana.

What happened after Punjab’s termination move?

Centre referred the act passed by Punjab to the President of India. In 2016, SC started hearings into a presidential reference to decide on the legality of the 2004 Act and declared that the act was constitutionally invalid. Before SC’s decision, the Punjab government, then headed by SAD, came out with another law, de-notifying the land acquired for the construction canal and returning it to its owners. Haryana challenged the law in the Supreme Court, which ordered status quo.

Where do things stand today?

Since 2020, SC has been directing the Chief Ministers of both states to negotiate and settle the SYL canal issue through talks to be mediated by the centre. The meeting between the CMs of both states on October 14 was part of a similar exercise. But the deadlock is far from over.

What is the respective stand of Punjab and Haryana?

Punjab, for a long, has been maintaining that it has no spare water to share with Haryana. Moreover, the availability of Ravi-Beas water has also come down drastically over the period of time due to so many factors including climate change. It also reasoned that the state has already over-exploited its groundwater for irrigation purposes to sustain the country's food security. In such a situation, sharing water with any other state is next to impossible. Haryana, on the other hand, maintained that it badly needed water for southern parts of Haryana. It also cited its rightful claims over the Ravi-Beas rivers.

What happens next?

As told by Haryana CM after Friday's meeting, they will brief the centre over Punjab’s latest denial to share river water. All eyes will now be on SC when it resumes the hearing of the matter on January 18, 2023. The Centre’s stand will also be keenly watched.