DW BUREAU / Chandigarh

Amid a stand-off with Haryana over the distribution of water from the Bhakra dam, the Punjab Assembly on Monday unanimously passed a resolution, stating that not even a single drop of water will be given from its share to the neighbouring state.As all the political parties put up a united face in the House to protect Punjab's river water, the resolution said the Bhakra Beas Management Board (BBMB) has become "a mere puppet" in the hands of the BJP-led Centre, and therefore it should be reorganised to protect Punjab's rights.

The House also termed the Dam Safety Act of 2021 an "attack" on the rights of Punjab, demanding that the Centre repeal it.

The Punjab government moved the resolution during a special session of Vidhan Sabha convened in the wake of the water-sharing row with Haryana.

Representatives from the opposition parties supported the resolution, with the leader of the opposition, Partap Singh Bajwa, asserting that Punjab doesn't have even a single drop of water to spare.

When Speaker Kultar Singh Sandhwan was conducting voting, BJP MLA Ashwani Sharma flagged the mentioning of his party's name in the resolution, triggering sharp reactions from the treasury benches.

Participating in the debate on the resolution, Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann asserted that Punjab will not allow the release of even a single drop of water to Haryana, saying his state does not have surplus water to spare. "This issue has been thrust upon Punjab at a time when the state requires water for the upcoming paddy sowing season," he said.

Stating that Punjab continues to give 4,000 cusecs of water to Haryana for drinking purposes on humanitarian grounds, Mann said, "Today, Punjab is calling its sons and daughters to stand with it to save water. I assure that there will be no compromise on this issue.

"Not even a single drop of Punjab's water will be allowed to be released. Even if a battle needs to be fought in the Supreme Court, we will fight it out." Earlier, Water Resources Minister Barinder Kumar Goyal moved the resolution, after which it was taken up for discussion.

Reading out the resolution, Goyal accused the BJP of trying to take away the rights of Punjab through its governments in Haryana, at the Centre, and through the BBMB.

"By calling a BBMB meeting unconstitutionally and illegally, an attempt is being made to forcefully provide Punjab's rightful water to Haryana. Haryana used its share of water by March 31. Now the BJP wants to give water from Punjab's share to Haryana," the resolution said.

In the last three years, the Punjab government has tried to bring canal water to every farm in Punjab, it said.

"A network of canals and water courses has been built on a very large scale. Until 2021, only 22 per cent of Punjab's fields received canal water. But today, around 60 per cent of the fields are getting canal water.

"This is why every single drop of Punjab's water has become very precious for the state. Punjab no longer has any spare water to give to any other state," the resolution said.

"After Haryana on April 6 requested Punjab that it needed water for drinking purposes, Punjab showed a big heart and gave 4,000 cusecs of water to the state because our 'gurus' have taught us that giving water to a thirsty person is a great virtue," it said.

Goyal said that the population of Haryana was three crore, and it needed only 1,700 cusecs of water to meet its water requirements, including drinking water and for other human needs.

"Now, Haryana is saying all of a sudden that it needs 8,500 cusecs of water. Punjab does not have extra water to meet its demand. So, the BJP forcibly called a meeting of BBMB unconstitutionally and illegally, and passed a resolution that Punjab will have to give water to Haryana from its share," Goyal told the Assembly.

"This is not acceptable to us," he added.

(editor@dailyworld.in)