Punjab CM Mann requests water for HP from PM BBMB

On Wednesday, Punjab’s chief minister Bhagwant Mann voiced his opposition to the Union government’s decision to eliminate the need for a No Objection Certificate (NOC) before Himachal Pradesh may draw water for irrigation and water supply projects.

The state minister expressed regret that the Union government had given the Bhakra Beas Management Board (BBMB) chairman instructions in this respect on May 15, 2023, in a letter to Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

According to these instructions, the Himachal Pradesh government’s cumulative draw is to be maintained below its corresponding share of electricity, which the Supreme Court determined to be 7.19%, and the Centre has instructed the BBMB chairman to abolish the current NOC procedure.

According to the water accords, Himachal Pradesh is not obligated to receive any water from the Sutlej and Beas Rivers, hence the CM said that the decision is totally irrational, unfounded, and very unfair to Punjab.

Though the Supreme Court granted Himachal Pradesh a 7.19% share, according to him, that share solely pertains to electricity and no directives have been made by the Supreme Court regarding the distribution of water.

Furthermore, Mann said that the distribution of water constitutes a “inter-state dispute” and that the states cannot unilaterally order one another to share the resources.

The CM said that the BBMB was established to manage the irrigation headworks at Ropar, Harike, and Ferozepur, as well as the dam and reservoirs (Nangal Hydel canal).

He said that Himachal Pradesh is not a partner state and that the BBMB is not permitted under the Act to provide any water from the rivers to states other than the partner states.

Mann said that Himachal Pradesh cannot make any claims about the waters of the Sutlej, Ravi, and Beas rivers since those waters have been assigned to Punjab, Haryana, Jammu & Kashmir, Delhi, and Rajasthan under different accords.

Mann argued that the Union government’s unilateral decision has to be revisited and rescinded given the current situation, when water levels in the rivers are falling precipitously year after year and there are urgent water demands from all of the partner states.