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Hindustan Times
16-05-2025
- Politics
- Hindustan Times
Consensus to confrontation: BBMB in deep waters over inter-state dispute
Blurb: Former BBMB members say differences between states were resolved at meetings and never got escalated to level that politicians would cry hoarse in public. For the first time since its inception six decades ago, the Bhakra Beas Management Board (BBMB) finds itself in the crosshairs of an unseemly water-sharing dispute between partner states Punjab and Haryana, ruled by political rivals. The controversy began on April 30 when the BBMB accepted Haryana's request for the release of a surplus 4,500 cusecs of water daily from the Bhakra-Nangal dam to which Punjab objected, saying the neighbouring state had exhausted its allocated share. Three of the BBMB's member states, BJP-ruled Haryana, Rajasthan and Delhi, voted in favour of releasing the surplus water, outnumbering AAP-ruled Punjab, while Congress-ruled Himachal Pradesh abstained. A statutory body constituted under Sections 79 and 80 of the Punjab Reorganisation Act, 1966, the BBMB plays a central role in the distribution of water among partner states -- Punjab, Haryana, Rajasthan, Himachal Pradesh and Delhi. At the beginning of the accounting year in August-September, depending on the monsoon, the BBMB determines the amount of water to be allocated to each state. For this year, the board allocated 5.512 million acre-feet (MAF) to Punjab, 2.987 MAF to Haryana, and 3.318 MAF to Rajasthan. While Haryana sought the surplus water for drinking water purposes in Hisar, Sirsa and Fatehabad districts, Punjab called a special session of the assembly on May 5 after an all-party meeting and resolved it didn't have a drop to spare for the neighbouring state that had already withdrawn 3.110 MAF or 104% of its share for the year. Caught in the crossfire, BBMB chairman Manoj Tripathi, who had been asked by the Union ministry of home affairs on May 2 and the high court on May 5 to ensure that surplus water was released to Haryana, found himself confined to the guest house at Nangal dam for three hours on May 8 as Punjab education minister Harjot Singh Bains and Aam Aadmi Party supporters locked the gate to prevent him from releasing the surplus water to Haryana. Tool to up political ante Besides the chairman, the BBMB has two full-time members, designated as a member (irrigation), who as a precedent comes from Haryana, and a member (power) from Punjab. As on date, the board chairman officiates as member irrigation and a senior officer from the Punjab State Power Corporation Limited is the member, power. But on May 1, the BBMB struck a discordant note by relieving Punjab's executive engineer, irrigation, of the key water-regulating charge. 'It needs deep understanding when different states have interests involved. The top man in the board should play a fair game and must have the power to convince top officials of partner states,' said a former BBMB chairman, requesting anonymity. 'There were times when the then Punjab chief minister used to take my word as final,' he said. According to a former BBMB member (power) Ashok Thapar, 'Discord between states is not a good sign. There were differences between states earlier also but they were resolved in the confines of the office, and never got escalated to this level that politicians would cry hoarse in public. The BBMB, once a symbol of national pride, is being used as a tool to up the political ante.' While Haryana chief minister Nayab Singh Saini has termed the need for surplus water a genuine demand to fulfil drinking water needs, his Punjab counterpart, Bhagwant Mann, has called it 'an attempt to rob Punjab of its precious resource at the cost of farmers'. Between May 1 and 11, Mann reached Nangal dam to stop the flow of water to Haryana thrice. He even accused Union power minister and former Haryana CM Manohar Lal Khattar of acting behind the scenes to coerce the BBMB for releasing surplus water to Haryana. Silt bigger challenge for board The BBMB is expected to tide over the confrontation between Punjab and Haryana by May 21 when the filling season at Bhakra and Pong dams begins. 'The dams start filling water with the snow melt and later with the monsoon from July to September 21, the states will get water according to the demand raised,' a BBMB official said. From September 22 when the filling season ends, water will be rationed and allocations made in proportion to the available water and individual share of the states. A bigger challenge for the board, however, is silt accumulating in the reservoir of Bhakra dam. The dead storage level of the dam is 1,462 feet which, BBMB officials say, is set to increase due to the silt in the reservoir. 'The total storage of Bhakra's reservoir is 7.8 MAF of which 1.97 MAF is dead storage capacity. This is increasing because of the huge quantity of silt entering the reservoir due to urbanisation in the catchment area of the dam,' a retired BBMB engineer said. 'Instead of political rhetoric, the partner states should focus on the dam's safety and longevity,' he added. The reservoir is spread over 168 sq km and silt coming in the reservoir is much more than expected when the dam was commissioned in 1963. Due to the silt, the dam fills and empties at a faster pace.
Hindustan Times
15-05-2025
- Politics
- Hindustan Times
Water-sharing row: HC notice to Centre, Hry, BBMB on Punjab plea for recalling May 6 order
Chandigarh : The Punjab and Haryana high court on Wednesday sought response from the Union and Haryana governments as well as the Bhakra Beas Management Board (BBMB) on a plea from the Punjab government, seeking recall of a May 6 court order that directed the state to allow the release additional 4,500 cusecs of water from the Bhakra dam for meeting the emergent needs of Haryana. 'The court has issued notice for May 20,' senior advocate and former advocate general Gurminder Singh, who appeared for Punjab, said after the hearing. On May 6, the high court directed Punjab not to interfere with the functioning of BBMB — a central body that manages and regulates water in Bhakra, Pong and Ranjit Sagar dams — and to abide by the Union home secretary's May 2 decision asking the board to release additional 4,500 cusecs of water to Haryana. The Punjab's plea, filed on Monday, contended that the May 6 high court order was 'illegal as the court was misled into believing' that the meeting held under the chairmanship of the Union home secretary on May 2 was conducted under Rule 7 of the BBMB rules, 1974, which requires a reference made by the board's chairman on the water-sharing issue. 'The direction in question was passed on account of concealment of material facts by non-applicant parties in the writ petition who have failed to bring true and correct facts to the notice of the court,' the plea alleged. The Punjab government has contended that the Union power secretary is the competent authority to deal with disputes around water sharing under the BBMB Act, and not the Union home secretary. The formal minutes of the May 2 meeting were not recorded, and only a press note was produced which, the plea alleged, formed the basis of the 'misleading information' that led to the May 6 court order. The order had come on a BBMB plea seeking the withdrawal of additional police deployment at Nangal dam, which it said was 'illegal and unconstitutional', and alleged it was being prevented from complying with the Centre's directions. The controversy dates back to April 28 when Haryana demanded 8,500 cusecs of water from the Bhakra dam, which was approved by BBMB. However, Punjab refused to accept the decision and deployed police at the Nangal dam, 13km downstream from Bhakra, to stop the additional water release. The Union home ministry stepped in on May 2 and directed that additional water be released to Haryana. However, the BBMB said the order could not be complied with as Punjab police prevented board officials from discharging their duties. Punjab has maintained that Haryana has already overdrawn its water quota and was 'demanding irrigation water under the guise of drinking needs'. The additional water could not be released even after the high court intervention of May 6. On May 9, BBMB chairman Manoj Tripathi, in an affidavit, told the court that board officials were prevented by Punjab Police from releasing the water. This led to the court asking the Punjab DGP and chief secretary to submit names of these officials and reiterating that additional water be released to Haryana. In response to the affidavit filed by the chairman, the Punjab government has filed another application alleging that Tripathi 'knowingly/intentionally submitted a false affidavit before the court on May 9' and demanded contempt proceedings against him for submitting a false affidavit. This application is yet to be taken up by the court. The BBMB was established by the Union power ministry in 1966 under Section 79 of the Punjab Reorganisation Act, which regulates water distribution from Bhakra, Nangal, Pong, and Ranjit Sagar dams among Punjab, Haryana, Himachal Pradesh, Delhi and Rajasthan.
Hindustan Times
14-05-2025
- Politics
- Hindustan Times
Water-sharing row: High court notice on Punjab plea for recalling May 6 order
The Punjab and Haryana high court on Wednesday sought response from the Centre, the Haryana government and the Bhakra Beas Management Board (BBMB) on a plea of the Punjab government, seeking recall of a May 6 order that directed the state to allow the release of additional 4,500 cusecs of water to neighbouring Haryana from the Bhakra dam. After the hearing on Wednesday, former advocate general and senior advocate Gurminder Singh, who appeared for Punjab, said, 'The court has issued notice for May 20.' The plea, filed on Monday, contended that the May 6 order is 'illegal as the court was misled into believing' that the meeting held under the chairmanship of the Union home secretary on May 2 was conducted under Rule 7 of the 1974 rules, which requires a reference made by the (BBMB) chairman on the water-sharing issue. 'The direction in question was passed on account of concealment of material facts by non-applicant parties in the writ petition who have failed to bring true and correct facts to the notice of the court,' it claimed. On May 6, the high court directed Punjab not to interfere with the functioning of BBMB and abide by the Union home secretary's May 2 decision which asked the board to release additional 4,500 cusecs of water to Haryana. The Punjab government has now contended that the Union power secretary is the competent authority to deal with disputes around water sharing under the BBMB Act, and not the Union home secretary. The formal minutes of the May 2 meeting were not recorded, and only a press note was produced which, it said, formed the basis of the 'misleading information' that led to the court order of May 6. The May 6 order had come on a BBMB plea seeking the withdrawal of additional police deployment at Nangal, which it said was 'illegal and unconstitutional', and argued that it was being prevented from complying with the Centre's directions. The controversy erupted on April 28 when the Haryana government's demand for additional water from the Bhakra dam was approved by the BBMB despite opposition from Punjab. The Punjab government refused to accept the decision and deployed police at Nangal dam, 13km downstream from Bhakra, to stop the additional water release. The Union home ministry stepped in on May 2 and directed that additional water be released to Haryana. However, the BBMB said that the order could not be complied with as Punjab Police prevented board officials from discharging their duties. Punjab has said that Haryana has already overdrawn its water quota and was 'demanding irrigation water under the guise of drinking needs'. The additional water could not be released even after the high court intervention of May 6. On May 9, BBMB chairman Manoj Tripathi, in an affidavit, told the high court that board officials were prevented by Punjab Police from releasing the water. This led to the high court asking the Punjab DGP and chief secretary to submit names of these officials and reiterating that additional water be released to Haryana. In response to the affidavit filed by the chairman, the Punjab government has filed another application alleging that Tripathi 'knowingly/intentionally submitted a false affidavit before the court on May 9' and demanded contempt proceedings against him for submitting a false affidavit. This application is yet to be taken up by the court. The BBMB was established by the Union power ministry in 1966 under Section 79 of the Punjab Reorganisation Act, which regulates water distribution from Bhakra, Nangal, Pong, and Ranjit Sagar dams between Punjab, Haryana, Himachal Pradesh, Delhi and Rajasthan.
Time of India
12-05-2025
- Politics
- Time of India
BBMB granted Haryana ‘one-time relaxation' without Punjab's indent or consent
Chandigarh: While the Punjab govt maintains its strong opposition, the Bhakra Beas Management Board (BBMB) is holding firm on its decision to release an additional 8,500 cusecs of water to per the resolution passed by the BBMB on April 30 by a "majority vote", it had resolved to release 8,500 cusecs of water for eight days (April 24 to May 1), "as a one-time exception/relaxation" without "placing of indent" by Punjab. The BBMB chairperson Manoj Tripathi had, meanwhile, assured to look after the needs of Punjab during the filling during a meeting with the Union home secretary in New Delhi on May 2, the BBMB chairperson claimed that the Board's decision of April 30 could not be implemented due to "deployment of police force" by the BBMB meeting, Tripathi informed that the BBMB had faced similar situations in the past as well and the last such situation was during the year 2021. It was observed by the Board that the decision of the technical committee meeting (TCM) held on April 23, was not complied with by Punjab due to non-placement of indent to the BBMB due to objection by the Punjab govt after the TCM meeting, read the Punjab member did not agree to this decision of extra water to Haryana beyond 4,000 cusecs, which is already being released at Haryana Contact Points (HCPs). The BBMB chairperson asked Haryana to place the indent directly to the BBMB with a copy to Punjab and Rajasthan for revised releases."Haryana will ensure releases to Rajasthan and Delhi so as to resolve the drinking water crisis in Rajasthan and submit a daily report to the BBMB after compliance. The member from Punjab did not agree with the above decision and recorded his objections," added the resolution."Since 8,500 cusecs was not released for 8 days (April 24 to May 1), the Board by majority resolved to release 8,500 cusecs with effect from May 1 for 8 days, even without placing the indent by Punjab, as a one-time exception/relaxation, which includes 500 cusecs to Rajasthan and 496 cusecs to Delhi. The chairperson of the BBMB stated that he would try to look after the needs of Punjab during the filling period," it BBMB had also claimed that with the present inflow pattern, the levels of Bhakra as on May 20 (at the end of the depletion period) would be between 1,540-1,545 feet, which would be higher than the long-term average levels of Bhakra on that date and would also be higher than the minimum level decided by the TCM (1,506 feet).The BBMB also informed that the minimum draw-down level (MDDL) for Bhakra was 1,462 ft. It was also intimated that releases decided during the TCM were based upon many factors such as balance share quota, needs of states, storage available in the reservoir and monsoon predictions by the India Meteorological Department (IMD).On May 1, however, the Punjab govt had swung into action to ensure "status quo" at the Nangal Dam. Led by minister Harjot Singh Bains, several AAP workers and locals had reached there and police deployment at the dam was also stepped up.'Water issue should not have escalated'According to the 'record of discussion' of the meeting convened by Union home secretary Govind Mohan on May 2, at the outset, he said the issue of releasing additional 4,500 cusecs of water to Haryana "should have been resolved within the BBMB and must not have escalated".Punjab's principal secretary, water resources, however, said Haryana had exhausted its allocated share and Punjab would not allow additional 4,500 cusecs of water for the next 8 days. Punjab cited cotton sowing in May and paddy cultivation from June. However, the Union home secretary "concluded with directions", which included "to release 4,500 cusecs of extra water from Bhakra Dam to Haryana for next 8 days to meet their urgent water requirements".It was also agreed that during the filling period of dams, the BBMB will provide this excess water to Punjab to fulfil their additional requirements. The Punjab govt has, meanwhile, pointed out that no minutes of the meeting with the Union home secretary had been provided and only record of discussion and a press release were 121110051 413 |
Indian Express
11-05-2025
- Politics
- Indian Express
Why Punjab and Haryana HC will issue contempt of court notice against Punjab govt
The Punjab and Haryana High Court said on Friday (May 9) that it may issue a contempt of court notice against the Punjab government for restricting the flow of 4,500 cusecs of water from the Bhakra dam to Haryana. This followed a day of high drama at the Nangal dam on Thursday, when the chairperson of Bhakra Beas Management Board (BBMB), Manoj Tripathi, was locked up in the BBMB rest house and not allowed to release water to the neighbouring state. It is the latest in the recent disagreement between the governments of Punjab and Haryana over water-sharing. Here is what to know. What happened on Thursday? On Thursday, workers of the ruling Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) were led by Punjab Cabinet minister Harjot Bains in staging a dharna outside Sutlej Sadan, the BBMB guesthouse. They aimed to stop Tripathi from releasing water to Haryana, and locked him inside the rest house. He was later 'rescued' in a police vehicle and moved out. The main gate of the resthouse was locked while the minister sat on a dharna for several hours. Later, Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann also arrived at the spot. The Punjab and Haryana High Court termed these events 'unbelievable'. A day prior, the court had restrained Punjab and its functionaries, including police personnel, from interfering in the day-to-day functioning, operation, and regulation of the Bhakra Nangal Dam. The Bhakra-Nangal project is among the earliest post-Independence river valley development projects, comprising dams on the Satluj – the Bhakra dam in Himachal Pradesh, and the Nangal dam in Punjab. The BBMB is tasked with distributing water between Punjab, Haryana, Rajasthan, Himachal Pradesh, and Delhi. At the start of every accounting year (roughly September-August, depending on the monsoon), it determines how much water will be allocated to each state. This year, it allocated 5.512 million acre-feet (MAF) to Punjab, 2.987 MAF to Haryana, and 3.318 MAF to Rajasthan. Punjab claims that Haryana has already withdrawn 3.110 MAF — or 104% of its share for the year. This is even as the water levels on the Ranjit Sagar (on River Ravi) and Pong dams are 16.9 and 31.87 feet lower than at the same time last year, mainly due to scant snowfall in the Himalayas this winter. The water level at the Bhakra dam is 12 feet lower than last year. In a May 2 BBMB meeting, the Union Home Secretary asked Punjab and Haryana to resolve the issue. He suggested that Haryana borrow 4,500 cusecs (cubic foot per second) of water from Punjab and return it during the filling season. He asked the BBMB chairperson to call an emergency meeting with them. Tripathi called the meeting the next day, but Punjab boycotted it and called it illegal, saying rules permit BBMB to call a meeting only after giving seven days' notice. On Monday, the Punjab government called a special Vidhan Sabha session to pass a resolution against the BJP, which is in power at the Centre and three of the five BBMB states. It said the BJP was using the BBMB to divest Punjab of its 'rightful share' of water. CM Mann also said that for the last two years, they had told Haryana it was taking more water than its quota, and that it should use water judiciously. They also alerted Haryana to their own water shortage in May and June. Further, Punjab said that Haryana's drinking water requirement is only 1,700 cusecs, and it is already giving them 4,000 cusecs of water on humanitarian grounds. What did the HC rule? Former Advocate General of Punjab, Gurminder Singh, submitted that the High Court had on May 6 directed the state to abide by the BBMB meeting's May 2 decision. He said the bench was given the impression that the release of 4,500 cusecs of extra water to Haryana over eight days to meet its urgent requirements was decided during the meeting, but that was not the case. He argued that the May 2 meeting dealt with law and order issues and had no bearing on water allotment. However, the High Court said there was a prima facie case against the Punjab government as the state did not comply with a court order directing it not to interfere in the working of the BBMB. A Division Bench of Chief Justice Sheel Nagu and Justice Sumeet Goel said a notice would be issued to the Punjab Chief Secretary KAP Sinha and the Director General of Police Gaurav Yadav. If Punjab assured compliance with the order, the court said it would hold its hand till Monday. 'There is a judicial order that has been passed, rightly or wrongly. Until it is stayed or set aside, it stands and has to be complied with,' the court said. 'We are not sending your officers to jail, we are only issuing notice,' it added.
