SYL Canal

The Supreme Court on Thursday told the Centre that being the main arbiter in water dispute between two states, it is required to play a more "pro-active role instead of being a mute spectator" and asked the Punjab and Haryana governments to hold discussions to resolve the Satluj-Yamuna Link (SYL) canal dispute. During the hearing, the Punjab government told the top court that they have huge scarcity of water with water tables going down in the rivers and there is "no point building canals like a Taj Mahal", with no water flowing through it. The Haryana government, on the other hand, told the apex court that its people need water which comes from Punjab, which has to abide by the decree for construction of a canal in its jurisdictional area. A bench of Justices Sanjay Kishan Kaul, Ahsanuddin Amanullah and Aravind Kumar said, "We expect the endeavours of the States to sit together to still find a solution is the way forward and we call upon the States to hold meetings, not frequently

Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann on Friday met with his Haryana counterpart Manohar Lal Khattar to discuss the Sutlej Yamuna Link (SYL) canal issue

Haryana Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar and his Punjab counterpart Bhagwant Mann will meet to discuss the Sutlej-Yamuna Link (SYL) canal issue on October 14. The discussion between the two chief ministers has been scheduled after the Supreme Court had recently nudged them to meet and try to find an amicable solution. We will definitely try to find a way to resolve the issue, Khattar told reporters here on Tuesday. Last month, he had said water from the SYL was crucial for Haryana. "On one hand, we are not getting this water, while on the other, Delhi is demanding more water from us. Fixing a deadline to resolve this issue at the earliest has become very essential," he had said. In Punjab, opposition parties had recently asked Mann to stand up for the state's cause over the issue. Water sharing from the SYL canal has been a bone of contention between the two states for several decades. Punjab has been demanding a reassessment of the Ravi-Beas river waters' volume while Haryana

The Centre on Tuesday told the Supreme Court the Punjab government is "not cooperating" in resolving the decades-old Sutlej-Yamuna Link (SYL) canal dispute between the state and Haryana. The apex court, which observed that water is a natural resource and living beings must learn to share it, said the parties have to have a "broader outlook" and realise the ramifications and necessity of a negotiated settlement, more so in view of security concerns, apparently referring to the occasional violence over the project. The counsel for Punjab told a bench headed by Justice S K Kaul that the state government is very keen to resolve the issue amicably. At the outset, Attorney General K K Venugopal, appearing for the Centre, told the bench that the apex court had in 2017 said that matter should be amicably settled and the Union of India, through the Water Resources Ministry, has been trying to bring together states of Haryana and Punjab for the purpose of an amicable settlement. "Unfortunate

SC intends to proceed with hearing on the next date if the Centre's out-of-court settlement fails

Says political alliance with INLD was broken long ago

Police seal Haryana-Punjab border as INLD declare water war over SYL canal

Earlier, SC termed law passed by Punjab govt to terminate water sharing agreement unconstitutional

Punjab has de-notified the land acquired for the Sutlej-Yamuna Link and transferred most of it to farmers

On Thursday, the Supreme Court held the Punjab Termination of Agreements Act, 2004, as 'unconstitutional'