SUTLEJ YAMUNA LINK CANAL water for the farmers

DISPUTE EXPLAINED of Haryana from the Punjab side.

February 23, 2017  It is about 122 km long and total length

is about 495 km which includes the sub-
canals.
 Then prime minister Indira Gandhi laid
the foundation when Darbara Singh was
the chief minister of Punjab.
Why is the SYL canal important?
 The 212km-long SYL canal was to carry
Haryana’s share of water to its “dry and
arid” southern part. While 121km of the
canal was to run through Punjab, the
remaining 91km through Haryana,
which completed the work in June 1980.
Around Rs 250 crore were spent on the
canal system.
 Haryana also gave Rs 1 crore to Punjab
in November 1976, the first instalment
of the Rs 192 crore it would give the
neighbour over the years for building the
canal. However, Punjab did not start the
work.
 Both the state filed separate petitions in
the Supreme Court in 1979.

What did Punjab suspend construction?

 The SS Barnala-led SAD government
started the work and 90% of it was
completed, costing around Rs 700 crore.
 But the construction was stopped when
Sikh militants gunned down two senior
Satluj Yamuna link is a canal that is built engineers and 35 labourers working on
between river Sutlej and Yamuna to provide the canal.
  On November 23, 1990, the Haryana  In September 1996, Haryana filed a plea
CM asked the Centre to hand over the in the Supreme Court, seeking directions
work to one of its agencies. for Punjab to complete the canal.
 A decision was taken to rope in the
Border Roads Organisation, but not a
brick has been laid since.

Where things stand today?

 The Centre on July 22, 2004 sought the
opinion of the apex court on the validity
of the Punjab law through a presidential
reference. The court heard the matter the
next month without any outcome.
 Haryana filed an application in February
2011 for the implementation of the 2002
and 2004 orders. Punjab filed a suit,
seeking a new tribunal to decide the
water share.
 In March 2016, Punjab came out with
another law, de-notifying the land
acquired for the canal and for it to be
returned it to its owners. Haryana
challenged the law in the Supreme
Court, which ordered status quo. Punjab
also returned to Haryana Rs 192 crore it
had received for the SYL canal only for
the cheque to be sent back.
 The hearing on presidential reference
resumed on February 29, 2016, and
concluded May 12. The court struck
down the law .
 The Supreme Court on Wednesday
February 23, 2017, made it clear that
state of Punjab would have to comply
with its order on construction of Satluj
Yamuna Link (SYL) canal, saying the
ongoing controversy over the project
must be brought to an end at the earliest.