SPECIAL ARTICLE

Water War between Punjab and Haryana

A Geographical Insight

H S Mangat

I
Much has been said and written about sharing of river n 1955 an agreement was enacted between Punjab and
waters between Punjab and Haryana from time to time Rajasthan to utilise the surplus waters of Beas and Ravi
rivers by which 7.20 million acre-feet (MAF) of water was
since the reorganisation of the state of Punjab in 1966.
allocated to Punjab, 8 MAF to Rajasthan and 0.65 MAF to
Various agreements, accords, tribunals, commissions Jammu and Kashmir (J&K), total being 15.85 MAF on the basis
and water sharing formulas have been worked out time of the flow series of 1921–45. After the reorganisation of Punjab in
to time, but the problem still remains unsolved. Haryana 1966, the Government of India subdivided the share of Punjab
between Punjab, Haryana and Delhi by allocating 3.5 MAF of
is stressing for the completion of the Sutlej–Yamuna Link
water to each Punjab and Haryana and 0.20 MAF to Delhi for
to carry its share of surplus Ravi–Beas water (3.5 million the augmentation of its water supply, through a notification on
acre-feet) awarded to it in 1976, while Punjab argues 24 March 1976. The Punjab government filed a review petition
that it has no surplus water to share with Haryana, and is for increasing its allocation and linked it with the construction
of Sutlej–Yamuna Canal (SYC) which was meant to carry water
adopting various measures to check this outflow of
to Haryana. On 31 December 1981 the chief ministers of Punjab,
water. Such awards and agreements are generally Haryana and Rajasthan entered into an agreement by which
politically-induced, and therefore, remain the share of Punjab was increased by 0.72 MAF and that of
unimplemented. This study highlights the ground Rajasthan by 0.60 MAF keeping in view 17.17 MAF of the water
available as per the flow series of 1921–60, while the shares of
realities related to irrigation to evaluate the claims and
other states remained unchanged (CWC 2015: 91–94). While
counterclaims of both the states. the then Prime Minister, Indira Gandhi, inaugurated the
digging of a new canal known as Satlej–Yamuna Link (SYL) in
1982, Punjab was taking various political, legal and legislative
measures against the water allocation as the water levels in
the rivers Ravi and Beas had been reduced from 17.17 MAF
(assumed under the agreement dated 31 December 1981) to
14.37 MAF as per the flow series of 1981–2002 (Singh 2004). To
check this flow of water to Haryana, Shiromani Akali Dal
(SAD) launched an agitation, known as Kapoori Morcha which
was considered as politically motivated.
When Amarinder Singh was the chief minister, taking into
account the water requirements of the state, the Punjab
Termination of Agreements Act was passed in the state Vidhan
Sabha, in 2004. At that time it was considered that the Congress
party got the law passed to get political mileage for the following
elections. But Singh also stressed that Punjab has no surplus
water and if SYL starts flowing it will risk the livelihood of Malwa
region of Punjab, where the groundwater is saline and agricul-
ture is dependent only on canal water. Even other areas of Pun-
jab where the level of groundwater has reached to a critical stage
require canal water, therefore, Punjab has no surplus water to
I am grateful to the referee of this paper for valuable suggestions and share with Haryana.
comments which helped in the improvement of this manuscript. Thanks
During its previous regime (2007–12), the SAD–Bharatiya
to Mohan Singh, for his cartographic support to this study.
Janata Party (BJP) government raised the issue of royalty on water
H S Mangat ([email protected]) is former professor of the of rivers supplied to other states. It was argued that non-riparian
Department of Geography, Punjabi University, Patiala.
states have no rights on the water of rivers flowing in Punjab.
52 decEMBER 10, 2016 vol lI no 50 EPW Economic & Political Weekly
 SPECIAL ARTICLE

Again this view of the state was considered politically motivated 2014. Related information has also been derived through scru-
to have an edge over the Congress party to win elections. tiny of newspapers and other relevant materials. To highlight
Making another turning point in its long-standing water the results, simple statistical and cartographic techniques of
sharing dispute with Haryana, the Punjab Vidhan Sabha on percentages and mapping have been adopted.
14 March 2016 unanimously passed a bill that provides for
returning free of cost 3,928 acres of land acquired for con- No Surplus Water
struction of SYL to the original landowners. Meanwhile, the
Haryana assembly passed a resolution for construction of the Temporal change in area under canal irrigation: Punjab is an
canal, rejecting the Punjab Bill of denotifying the SYL canal agricultural state, where more than 70% of rural population is
land. On 3 March 2016, the Supreme Court directed the Punjab directly engaged with agriculture. Therefore, major argument
government and the centre to maintain status quo on the land behind termination of agree- Table 1: Punjab and Haryana—Statewise
acquired for the construction of SYL canal, thus, stalling the ment is that, Punjab has no Net Area Sown under Canal Irrigation (%)
Year Punjab Haryana Difference
move to return it to the farmers. This move of the present gov- surplus water to share with
1970–71 31.7 26.7 5.0
ernment is also considered as politically motivated taking into Haryana. To find out the
1980–81 34.1 32.2 1.9
account the 2017 elections (Mohan 2016). But the Chief Minister validity of this argument, 1990–91 39.3 37.4 1.9
of Punjab, Prakash Singh Badal, is insisting that the state has data related to area under 2000–01 22.6 41.9 19.3
no surplus water to share with Haryana. canal irrigation in both the 2010–11 26.8 35.1 8.3
The defensive arguments of “no surplus water” put forwarded states have been collected 2012–13 27.3 38.3 11.0
by both the governments belonging to rival political parties to and analysed. Table 1 reveals Growth rate -13.88 43.45 57.3
check the additional flow of water to Haryana should not be that in 1970–71 Punjab was Source: Tabulated by the author.

ignored, by just considering as competitive politics, but their 5 percentage points ahead of Haryana in net area sown (NAS)
views should be deeply analysed before taking any decision. irrigated by canals.
Treaties that are only politically-induced and do not include But it could not maintain its position for long, as Haryana
provisions for economic benefits of the riparian states are not surpassed it by 19.3 points in 2000–01 and maintained its posi-
likely to sustain for long (Islam and Higano 2002: 1). tion by 11 points in 2012–13. Haryana recorded 43.45% growth
While commenting on the Prime Minister’s award of 1976 rate of NAS under canal irrigation against –13.88% witnessed
on sharing of river water between Punjab and Haryana, Ama- by Punjab (Table 1). Thus, during this period of 42 years, the
rinder Singh said, “the Central Government’s order of 24.3.76, position of Punjab and Haryana in the area under canal irriga-
which instead of determining the rights of the two states, arbi- tion has not only reversed, but the gap between the two states
trarily distributed the entire Ravi–Beas water, based on the has also been increased.
flow series established in 1955” (Singh 2016). On the 1981 inter-
state agreement, he observed that, “the agreement between the Spatial pattern of canal irrigation: Table 2 reveals that in
three chief ministers of Rajasthan, Punjab and Haryana on Punjab 27.11% of NAS is irrigated by canals against the 36.12% in
31.12.81 was more a political sop, as the water purported to be Table 2: Statewise Canal Irrigated Area to Net Areas Sown
distributed did not exist”. Similarly, while commenting on the (Average 2011–12 and 2012–13)
State/ District Percentage State/ District Percentage
Justice Eradi Commission report/award of 1987, he mentioned,
Punjab 27.11 Haryana 36.12
“whether it is a grossly wrong interpretation or a complete viola- Kapurthala – Panchkula –
tion of the terms of reference, the Commission’s report is totally SAS Nagar – Faridabad –
biased” (Singh 2016). “The lesson from Kaveri dispute is that no Jalandhar 0.84 Gurgaon 1.85
lasting solution to river water sharing is possible by passing politi- SBS Nagar 1.02 Rewari 1.99
Patiala 1.73 Yamuna Nagar 2.41
cal exigencies or coercion, legal or administrative” (Singh 2016).
Ludhiana 3.34 Ambala 3.72
Such problems lead to an unending cycle of demand, agitation,
Rupnagar 6.25 Mewat 5.40
arbitration, judicial review and so on (Banerjee 2004: 8). Hoshiarpur 6.98 Kaithal 5.76
Punjab has also sought “adjudication of the question whether Moga 7.63 Kurukshetra 10.93
Haryana and Rajasthan are riparian states or not” (Khanna Pathankot 8.33 Mahendragarh 13.11
2015). Treaties have to be based on objective criteria, such as Fatehgarh Sahib 10.78 Karnal 18.81
the type of land in the project area, fertility, capacity to hold- Sangrur 14.86 Bhiwani 22.21
Amritsar 18.12 Palwal 25.70
ing and absorbing water, water price, production cost per acre,
Gurdaspur 19.47 Panipat 36.12
expected net profit, etc (Islam and Higano 2002: 2). The demand Barnala 27.42 Jhajjar 42.54
for water has increased many folds in Punjab. Against this Firozpur 29.30 Rohtak 53.82
backdrop, there is a need to academically review this problem Fazilka 35.51 Sonipat 57.01
of sharing of river waters between Punjab and Haryana. Tarn Taran Sahib 43.91 Jind 64.36
This study analyses the arguments of “no surplus water” Mansa 50.53 Hisar 61.50
Bathinda 73.37 Fatehabad 61.66
and “royalty on river water” on sharing of river water between
Faridkot 90.23 Sirsa 76.17
Punjab and Haryana. Relevant data have been collected from Muktsar 93.41 Regional average 31.25
the statistical abstracts of Punjab and Haryana for 2012 and Source: Tabulated by the author.

Economic & Political Weekly EPW decEMBER 10, 2016 vol lI no 50 53

SPECIAL ARTICLE
Figure 1: Punjab–Haryana Region—Canal Irrigated Area as Percentage to Net Area Sown Haryana. In Faridkot and Muktsar
(Average, 2011–12 and 2012–13) (Data by districts)
districts of Punjab more areas have
74*E 75* 76* 77* N been cultivated under canal irriga-
tion than the highest recorded by
Sirsa district of Haryana. Jalandhar,
Pathankot SBS Nagar and Patiala districts of
Punjab have less area cultivated
N
32*
under canal irrigation than the
Gurdaspur lowest witnessed by Gurgaon dis-
Amritsar
trict of Haryana (Table 2). On the
Hoshiarpur
whole, six districts in each state,
namely, Kapurthala, SAS Nagar,
Tarn Taran Kapurthala Jalandhar, SBS Nagar, Patiala and
K
Jalandhar
Ludhiana districts of Punjab and
SBS Nagar N Panchkula, Faridabad, Gurgaon,
31*
Firozpur Rupnagar
31* Rewari, Yamuna Nagar and Am-
Ludhiana
SAS Nagar bala districts of Haryana recorded
Moga C
Faridkot Fatehgarh
Panchkula 5% or less NAS irrigated by canals
Sahib (Table 3 and Figure 1).
Barnala Although the number of districts
Fazilka Ambala
Muktsar Patiala Yamunanagar falling in this category of very low
Sangrur
Bathinda level of canal irrigation is same in
30* Kurukshetra 30* both the states, Punjab has 13 per-
Mansa centage points more NAS in this cat-
Kaithal egory than Haryana (Table 4, p 55).
Karnal
Sirsa It must be noted from Figure 1 that
Fatehabad
the low level of canal irrigation in
Jind Panipat Haryana is confined to the areas
Hisar having topographical constraints
Sonipat
for canal irrigation like foot-hill
29* 29*
Rohtak
zone covering Panchkula district
as a whole and the northern parts
Bhiwani of Ambala and Yamuna Nagar dis-
Percentage
Jhajjar tricts in the north and Aravalli
Gurgaon outliers in Rewari district in south.
40 Faridabad
Regional Average: 31.25 Mahendragarh Likewise, Faridabad and Gurgaon
20
10
Rewari districts are under heavy pressure
5
Palwal
28* of urbanisation where there is little
Mewat
scope for canal irrigation. In Punjab,
C- Chandigarh leaving aside a very small belt of
K- Part of Kapurthala
O 50 undulating topography in foots of
74*E 75* 76* Kms. 77*
Sivalik hills and high pressure of
urbanisation in SAS Nagar, all
Table 3: Canal Irrigated Area to Net Area Sown other districts falling in the category of very low level of canal
(Average of 2011–12 and 2012–13) (%)
irrigation are having plain topography and fertile soils where
Category Punjab Haryana
NAS Districts Districts intensive tube well irrigation is practised due to non-availabil-
Very low Kapurthala, SAS Nagar, Jalandhar, Panchkula, Faridabad, Gurgaon, ity of canal water.
(5 and less) SBS Nagar, Patiala, Ludhiana Rewari, Yamuna Nagar, Ambala If we combine the lowest two categories of areas (very low
Low Rupnagar, Hoshiarpur, Moga, Mewat, Kaitha and low), it is found that 39% of NAS in Punjab falls in the
(5.1–10) Pathankot category in which 10 or less percentage of NAS is under canal
Moderate Fatehgarh Sahib, Sangrur, Kurukshetra, Mahendragarh, irrigation against 23% in Haryana. Thus, Punjab has 16 per-
(10.1–20) Amritsar, Gurdaspur Karnal
centage points more area under low level of canal irrigation
High Barnala, Firozpur, Fazilka Bhiwani, Palwal, Panipat
than Haryana (Table 4).
(20.1–40)
Very high Tarn Taran Sahib, Mansa, Jhajjar, Rohtak, Sonipat, Jind,
Jhajjar, Rohtak, Sonipat, Jind, Hisar, Fatehabad and Sirsa
(>40) Bathinda, Faridkot, Muktsar Hisar, Fatehabad, Sirsa districts of Haryana and Tarn Taran, Mansa, Bathinda, Faridkot
Source: Tabulated by the author. and Muktsar districts of Punjab are the areas where more than
54 decEMBER 10, 2016 vol lI no 50 EPW Economic & Political Weekly
 SPECIAL ARTICLE

40% of NAS is under canal irrigation (Table 3). There is a con- Tube well irrigation: The green revolution started in India
tinuous belt of very high level of canal irrigation covering cen- with an introduction of high-yielding varieties (HYV) of seeds
tral and north-western districts of Haryana and south-western of rice and wheat during mid-1960s and Punjab was among the
districts of Punjab (Figure 1). In fact, north-western districts of first states to adopt it. The cultivation of HYV seeds was only
Haryana and south-western districts of Punjab have similar possible through the provision of assured irrigation, which
conditions of brackish water aquifers as a result underground was facilitated with the introduction of tube wells and, also
water is unfit for tube well irrigation. Therefore, canal irriga- with the application of chemical fertilisers which demanded
tion is a compulsion even at the risk of waterlogging in these an intensive assured irrigation. With this started an era of
areas. In this category of areas of very high level of canal water-intensive agriculture in Punjab, the consequences of
irrigation, Punjab has 21 percentage points less NAS than which the state is bearing at present although it has brought
Haryana (Table 4). Again if we combine the areas recording India out from food deficit state to a food surplus country.
high and very high level of canal irrigation, it is found that Assured marketing under fixed prices regime for collecting
Haryana has 23 percentage points more area in this category foodgrains for central pool has also played a key role in
than Punjab (Table 4). Thus, Haryana has an upper hand in pushing Punjab towards water-intensive agriculture, as
NAS irrigated by canals by having more area under high level farmers could not find suitable alternatives to be out of the
of canal irrigation, and less area under low level of canal rice–wheat cycle.
irrigation than Punjab. The situation is such that water supply Table 6 reveals that during last 40 years, the cropped area in
from the canal system in Punjab does not meet even 20% re- the state had been increased by 38.82%, while the share of rice
quirement of the crops being grown in the state (Johal 2010). in the cropped area increased from 6.87% in 1970–71 to
Table 4: Statewise Net Sown Area Irrigated by Canals under Various Levels 35.85% in 2010–11, recording a growth rate of 421.83%. Like-
of Canal Irrigation (Average 2011–12 and 2012–13) (%) wise, the number of tube wells per 1,000 ha of cropped area
Canal Irrigation (NAS ) Punjab Haryana Difference
(NAS Irrigated by Canals) (NAS Irrigated by Canals) (% Points) also recorded a growth rate of 414.71% during the same peri-
More than 40 25.63 46.22 20.59 od, suggesting a perfect correlation between the increase in
20.1–40 14.27 16.72 2.45 the share of rice in cropped area and the number of of tube
10.1–20 20.74 14.16 6.58 wells added for irrigation. It must be mentioned that during
5.1–10 12.67 8.84 3.83 this period, area under rice increased by 624.62%, while the
5 and less 26.69 14.06 12.63 production of rice increased by 1,472.53%, that is, more than
Source: Tabulated by the author.
two times of the growth rate of area under rice (Table 6). Such
Levels of canal irrigation: Taking Punjab and Haryana as a an unprecedented increase in the production of rice was made
region, it is found that the share of Punjab in areas of very high possible by the farmers of Punjab by putting more fertilisers,
level of canal irrigation is 40% against 60% of Haryana, while pesticides and water at the cost of their economic and environ-
the percentage share of Punjab in areas of very low level of mental sustainability. With this rice which being a very high-
canal irrigation is 69% against 31% of Haryana (Table 5). water consuming crop (producing 1 kg rice, for example,
Table 5: Net Area Sown and Rural Population Falling under Various Levels of requires about 3,500 litres of water (WWDR 2012). The rice,
Canal Irrigation (%) which should never have been allowed to become a key crop
Level of Canal Irrigation (NAS) Punjab Haryana
NAS Rural Population NAS Rural Population
due to semi-arid climatic conditions of the state, has emerged
Very high (more than 40) 40 36 60 64 major crop of the state sharing 80.38% of the total cropped
Very low (5 and less) 69 62 31 38 area. Similarly, rice occupies 80.47% of the total area under
Source: Tabulated by the author. kharif crops soaking up groundwater at unsustainable rates.
Similarly, Table 5 reveals that, on the one hand, 64% of rural Table 6: Punjab—Decade-wise Share of Area under Rice in Total Cropped
population of Haryana enjoys the facility of very high level of Area and Number of Tube Wells
Year Area under Cropped Share of Production No of
canal irrigation against 36% of rural population of Punjab. On Rice (000 ha) Area (000 ha) Rice in Total of Rice Tube Wells
the other hand, 62% of rural population of Punjab is suffering Cropped (000 Mt Tons) (Per 000 ha of
Area (%) Cropped Area)
from very low level of canal irrigation against 38% rural popu-
1970–71 390 5,678 6.87 688 34
lation of Haryana. Thus, the share of Haryana in NAS falling
1980–81 1,183 6,763 17.49 3,233 89
under very high level of canal irrigation is 20 percentage 1990–91 2,015 7,502 28.86 6,506 107
points more than Punjab. Meanwhile, its share in the category 2000–01 2,612 7,941 32.89 9,157 135
of very low level of canal irrigation is 38 percentage points less 2010–11 2,826 7,882 35.85 10,819 175
than Punjab. Likewise, Haryana has 28 percentage points Growth rate (%) 624.62 38.82 421.83 1472.53 414.71
more rural population than Punjab falling in areas of very high Source: Statistical Abstracts of Punjab, 1992, 2012.

level of canal irrigation and Punjab has 24 percentage points The shortage of canal irrigation in Punjab is met by digging
more population than Haryana suffering from very low level more and more tube wells for sucking more groundwater
of canal irrigation. Thus, Punjab and Haryana occupy opposite resources. There are 33 tube wells per 100 ha of NAS in
ends (lower and upper) of the scale, respectively in terms of Punjab against 21 tube wells in Haryana. In Punjab about 3.63
NAS under canal irrigation and population served by various lakh applications are with Punjab State Power Corporation
levels of canal irrigation. awaiting the nod for an electric connection (Singh 2013).
Economic & Political Weekly EPW decEMBER 10, 2016 vol lI no 50 55
SPECIAL ARTICLE

Figure 2: Punjab and Haryana—Statewise Percentage of Net Area Sown year) from very deep aquifers putting its future generations at
Irrigated by Tube Wells risk to spare water for other states and to meet its own require-
80
ments of water for irrigation. The state has to carry out mining
70
of groundwater by putting tremendous power resources to
60
Punjab produce grains most of which are meant for other states.
50
Haryana
Percent

In Punjab, 5,400 litre of water is consumed for producing

40
1 kilogram of rice as compared to 2,400 litre water in West
30
20
Bengal (Sharma 2013). In 2013–14 Punjab contributed 25.5%
10
of rice and 43.4% of wheat in the central pool. It may be noted
0
that Punjab contributed 45.3% rice and 73% wheat against its
1980–81 1990–91 2000–01 2010–11 2012–13 share of 1.5% of total area of the country in 1980–81.
Source: Computed by the author (based on data from: Statistical Abstracts of Punjab and
Haryana, 2012–14).
It is true that Punjab is being paid for the grains it contri-
butes to the central pool, but what about the ecological conse-
Table 7 reveals that area under tube well irrigation is con- quences associated with depletion of groundwater reserves
tinuously increasing in both the states since 1980–81. In 2012–13, that have started appearing? Due to excessive withdrawal of
72% of NAS in Punjab was under tube well irrigation against groundwater, 86% blocks in Punjab have been declared critical
50% in Haryana. During this period, Haryana recorded indicating that if adequate measures are not taken to check
91.46% growth in area under tube well irrigation against such indiscriminate withdrawals of water, three-fourths of
55.32% witnessed by Punjab. The high growth rate in case of Punjab will start facing agricultural stress. Punjab deserves a
Haryana is due to low base level figure. However, the gap special consideration of the centre towards augmentation of
between the two states remained almost same during the study its groundwater resources.
period (Figure 2). Based on the data released by the Central It must be mentioned that the practice of taking and paying
Ground Water Board, during 2014, 86% blocks in Punjab have royalty was in vogue in Punjab during the British rule. Water
been declared as dark blocks (Dhariwal 2015). Exploitation of for irrigation from Sirhind canal was supplied to Patiala and
groundwater resource in these blocks is at the cost of ecologi- other princely states subject to payment of seigniorage
cal health of the state. In Haryana also 63% blocks come under charge or royalty to British Punjab under agreement of 1873
the category of overexploited and critical stage of groundwater (CWC 2015: 21–30). Similarly, the princely state of Bikaner
utilisation (Singh and Amrita 2015). Although both states are was also paying royalty to British Punjab for getting water for
suffering depleting groundwater table, taking into account of irrigation through Bikaner canal as per the agreement
percentage of dark blocks, Table 7: Statewise Net Area Sown enacted among the British government, nawab of Baha-
this problem is 23 percentage Irrigated by Tube Wells (%)
walpur and maharaja of Bikaner on 4 September 1920 (CWC
points more severe in Punjab Year Punjab Haryana 2015: 8–13).
than Haryana. Not only 1980–81 46.26 26.12
Moreover, royalty does not mean charging for river water
1990–91 52.94 34.91
Punjab and Haryana, India supplied to the non-riparian states rather it is the compensa-
2000–01 72.33 41.60
as whole is one of the great 2010–11 71.04 46.90
tion for the losses and risks which the riparian state has to bear
exploiters of groundwater 2012–13 71.85 50.01 on account of rivers flowing through it. A few such losses and
resources for agriculture. Growth rate 55.32 91.46 risks in brief are listed as under:
India’s estimated groundwa- Source: Statistical Abstracts of Punjab and • Thousands of hectares of fertile land of Punjab is under
ter abstraction in 2010 was Haryana, 2014. riverbeds and water reservoirs meant to provide river water
251 km²/year, out of which 89% was for agriculture, 9% for for irrigation.
domestic use and 2% for industry (Ranganathan 2015). • Thousands of hectares of land are subject to degradation
In Punjab there is one tube well after 3 ha of NSA. As a result, every year due to soil erosion and silting along the riverbeds.
the water table has fallen to the extent that the shallow tube • All the main rivers in Punjab are mostly embanked, supported
wells run by 5 horsepower (hp) motors have dried up and by spurs. Such embankments and related structures often
farmers have to install submersible tube wells run by 15–20 hp achieve what they are meant to achieve, but they may also
motors for drawing water from a depth of 300–400 feet below have some disadvantages (Andrew 1981). When breached,
the surface of the earth. This has created a power crises for the large areas in the Amritsar, Gurdaspur, Jalandhar, Ludhiana,
state and economic crises for the farmers. Firozpur, Kapurthala, Nawanshahr and Ropar districts are af-
fected by floods (Rana 2010; Iyer 2008).
Royalty Issue • Water released from dams also creates flood problems in the
Royalty on river waters has been questioned on the ground areas located downstream. Invariably, there are reports in the
that water is not a natural resource like coal that is mined and press about the flood alert or actual flooding with water re-
transported to the other areas. It is true that the water sup- leased by Bhakra Beas Management Board (BBMB) from the
plied to the other states is not mined. Punjab has installed dams under its control, keeping in mind the safety of dams.
13.85 lakh tube wells which are continuously mining ground- One of the reasons of devastating floods in Patiala district in
water (according to Singh 2009, about 2.5 acre feet every 1993 was the release of such water.
56 decEMBER 10, 2016 vol lI no 50 EPW Economic & Political Weekly
 SPECIAL ARTICLE

• Year after year, Punjab has to bear damages from floods their share of water from the rivers flowing in Punjab without
associated with rivers flowing through it (Table 8). any liability. Punjab has to bear social, economic, law and
Table 8: Punjab—Year-wise Flood Damages order and ecological burdens. Thus, compensation for the
Item 1980 1990 2000 2011 2013 losses and risks the state has to bear on account of flowing
No of villages/towns affected 1,191 755 81 1,196 1,408 rivers and canals carrying water to Haryana and Rajasthan is
Area affected in sq km 489 471 127 6,954 37,892 fully justified.
No of persons affected 85,724 90,465 319 1,71,773 1,37,858
No of human lives lost 44 13 5 36 1,334 Which State Requires More River Water?
No of cattle head lost 117 275 88 133 2,540
Taking Punjab and Haryana as a geographical region it is
Value of crops damaged ( `000) 6,559 2,51,086 77,116 22,32,525 10,50,048
found that Punjab has more share in NAS, total cropped area,
Value of houses damaged ( `000) 4,391 53,428 800 3,04,681 1,99,637
tube well irrigated area, number of tube wells, area under rice,
Damage of public utilities ( `000) 201 29,000 2,700 3,95,511 355
Total damages of crops,
area under wheat, percentage of NAS under very low level of
houses, public utilities ( `000) 11,151 3,33,514 80,616 29,32,722 12,50,040 canal irrigation and percentage of rural population suffering
Source: Statistical Abstract of Punjab, 2014. very low level of canal irrigation but it has less NAS under
• The state has to spend every year on flood protection measures. canal irrigation and percentage of area as well as rural popu-
• Rivers also provide safe routes to smugglers/terrorists/anti- lation enjoying facility of high level of canal irrigation than
social elements, particularly, when they form international Haryana (Table 9).
boundary along an unfriendly country. The waterbodies close Table 9: Comparison of Various Indicators
to the international border in Ajnala and Firozpur continue to (Average 2010–11, 2011–12 and 2012–13) (%)
Indicator Punjab Haryana Difference
pose a challenge to the Border Security Force (BSF). The
Net area sown 54 46 8
growth on the riverbeds and undulating places in the river
Total cropped area 55 45 10
(Ravi) gave ample space to smugglers to sneak drugs into the
Canal irrigated area 47 53 6
Indian territory (Jaiswar 2015). The state has to put extra Tube well irrigated area 63 37 26
vigilance to check such infiltrations. Number of tube wells 65 35 30
• Active floodplains of the rivers locally known as chumb or Area under rice 70 30 40
mund with thick growth of long grass/shrubs/sarkanda Area under wheat 58 42 16
vegetation with little accessibility provide a breeding ground Percentage of NAS under very high level of
for antisocial elements which sometimes become difficult canal irrigation (average 2011–12 and 2012–13) 40 60 20
Percentage of NET under very low level of
to control.
canal irrigation (average 2011–12 and 2012–13) 69 31 38
• Canals constructed to carry water to the other states also Percentage of rural population enjoying very
create waterlogging in the adjoining areas making it unfit for high level of canal irrigation (2011) 36 64 28
agriculture and settlements. One of the reasons for waterlog- Percentage of rural population suffering from
ging in Firozpur, Faridkot and Muktsar districts is the pres- very low level of canal irrigation (2011) 62 38 24
Source: Tabulated by the author.
ence of Rajasthan and Sirhind feeder carrying 10,000 cusecs
water a day to Rajasthan. As the canals become old, the wast- Solutions
age through seepages increases as high as 20% causing water- This study suggests a review of these problems with emerging
logging, salinisation and degradation of soil (Luna 2010). The ground realities. However, even dropping the SYL issue is not a
south-western Punjab known as the cotton belt of northern permanent solution of agrarian crises being faced by both the
India is gradually replacing cotton with rice due to water- states. Demand for water has increased manyfold in Punjab
logging. Over the years, the cropping pattern in Muktsar dis- as well as in Haryana not only due to increase in NAS, but also
trict has changed from wheat–cotton to wheat–paddy and adoption of rice cultivation not suitable for semi-arid climate
wheat–basmati rotation due to waterlogging (Watts 2014). of the region. Rice was not cultivated here till independence,
Bathinda, Mansa and Firozpur districts are also facing the because this area did not have enough water (Sahai 2014).
same problem. Punjab and Haryana adopted rice cultivation with the advent
• Across the slope alignments of these canals and inadequate of tube well irrigation encouraged by the centre under green
aqueducts constructed for crossing of various drainage lines revolution to meet the food requirements of the country. Both
also aggravate the flood problem. Ghanaur area of Patiala the states have overexploited their groundwater resources
district is subject to annual flooding only due to the situation to the extent that the farmers at present are under great
created by the crossing of Ghaggar, Narwana branch, Pachisdara economic stress.
and the SYL canal (Ahmed 2008). Similarly, Khanauri area of Various scholars have observed that court decisions are not
Patiala district and adjoining parts of Sangrur district are subject the ultimate solutions for such problems. While speaking in
to annual flooding due to the conditions created by crossing of Rajya Sabha, Gill (2016) asserted that “it would be dangerous
Ghaggar and Bhakra main line canal (Ahmed 2008: 63). to think court orders can solve the issue. We see this situation
Thus, rivers and canals are not only sources of water but in all the southern states.” Therefore, centre should not look
they also create some problems/miseries for the state in towards courts, but come forward with special area-specific
which they are flowing. Haryana and Rajasthan are getting agricultural policies and packages for both the states to break
Economic & Political Weekly EPW decEMBER 10, 2016 vol lI no 50 57
SPECIAL ARTICLE

rice–wheat cycle without affecting the income of the farmers irrigation than Haryana. But it is much behind Haryana in
and to save this food basket of the country. Farmers of both the respect of percentage of NAS under canal irrigation, growth of
states are capable enough to adopt any technology to grow any NAS under canal irrigation, share of canal irrigated area in net
crop, horticulture, etc, with assured returns. irrigated area, percentage of NAS under high level of canal ir-
rigation and percentage of rural population enjoying the fa-
Conclusions cility of high level of canal irrigation. The study, therefore,
Punjab is much ahead of Haryana in NAS, cropped area, area concludes that the time has come to review the norms drawn
under tube well irrigation, number of tube wells, area under for sharing of river water under the emerging ground realities
rice cultivation, area under low level of canal irrigation and that have altogether changed than those prevailing at the
percentage of rural population suffering from low level of time of 1981 agreement.

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58 decEMBER 10, 2016 vol lI no 50 EPW Economic & Political Weekly