INLD won't allow pipeline for Yamuna Water Project between Haryana & Rajasthan: Abhay Chautala

Chandigarh, Jul 16 (PTI) Indian National Lok Dal president Abhay Singh Chautala on Thursday said his party vehemently opposes the recent signing of an agreement between Haryana and Rajasthan regarding the Yamuna Water Project. “Once again, an agreement with Rajasthan is being used to perpetrate an injustice against the farmers of Haryana,” Chautala told reporters here. In 1994, the Congress entered into this agreement to strengthen its political foothold in Rajasthan, but the INLD prevented its implementation then, Chautala said, adding that the party would strongly oppose the latest agreement as well. “The Indian National Lok Dal (INLD) will oppose any attempt to lay pipes for water supply; the pipeline will not be allowed at any cost,” Chautala said. Under an MoU signed recently, Rajasthan will utilise the surplus rainwater available in Haryana between July and October through a dedicated pipeline for drinking water purposes. Under the project, a pipeline will be laid from the Hathnikund Barrage to Rajasthan to facilitate the use of surplus water. On the SYL canal issue, Chautala accused the BJP of doing nothing to ensure Haryana gets its share of SYL water despite the party being in power in the state and at the Centre for 12 years. The apex court verdict on SYL water rights came in Haryana's favour long back, he said. “Although the BJP has been in power in Haryana for nearly 12 years, its leaders – including former chief minister Manohar Lal and his successor Nayab Singh Saini – took up the SYL matter with the prime minister,” Chautala claimed. “I have written to Prime Minister Narendra Modi today, stating that despite the apex court ruling in Haryana's favour, the state is yet to get its share of SYL water,” the INLD chief said. “If the prime minister claims to have a special attachment to Haryana, he should ensure that the state receives its share of SYL water,” Chautala told reporters. The Sutlej-Yamuna Link (SYL) canal issue has been a bone of contention between Haryana and Punjab for the past several years. In May 2025, the Supreme Court directed the governments of Punjab and Haryana to cooperate with the Centre for an amicable solution to the decades-old dispute over the SYL canal, which was conceptualised for effective water sharing between the two states from the Ravi and Beas rivers. The project envisages a 214-km canal, of which a 122-km stretch was to be constructed in Punjab and the remaining 92 km in Haryana. While Haryana has completed the project in its territory, Punjab, which launched the work in 1982, has shelved it. With the dispute lingering for decades, the top court on January 15, 2002, ruled in favour of Haryana in a suit filed by it in 1996, and directed the Punjab government to construct its portion of the SYL canal. The Punjab government has maintained that the state has no surplus water and demanded its legitimate share in the Indus waters, citing the “grim” situation of groundwater in Punjab. “While the canal has been constructed in Haryana, the responsibility for its construction in Punjab lies with the Central government. When I was the leader of the opposition in Haryana, I met Union ministers Nitin Gadkari and Rajnath Singh. We even met the president on this matter," Chautala said. But the BJP government in the state did nothing to ensure that Haryana gets its rightful share of water, he alleged. “Not only did it fail to secure SYL canal water, but the BJP also scrapped the Dadupur-Nalvi canal that had already been constructed. “The Dadupur-Nalvi canal was intended to improve groundwater levels in Yamunanagar, Kurukshetra and Ambala. During the monsoon, surplus water from the Yamuna was to be diverted into this canal,” he said. “The government scrapped the project solely to avoid paying higher compensation to the farmers for their land. Parts of the Dadupur-Nalvi canal were constructed during the INLD’s tenure, while other sections were built during the previous Congress regime,” Chautala claimed. The INLD chief also alleged that several scams took place under the BJP over the last 12 years. “These include the liquor scam, property registration scam, IDFC Bank scam, recruitment scam, paper leak scam, paddy scam, wheat scam, garbage disposal scam, illegal mining, and the development of illegal colonies,” Chautala claimed. PTI SUN ARI