Chandigarh: The ongoing water sharing dispute between Punjab and Haryana escalated Thursday when workers of Punjab’s ruling Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) led by cabinet minister Harjot Bains “took control” of the regulatory room at Nangal dam in the state to stop the flow of water from the Bhakra-Nangal dam system to neighbouring Haryana.
Nangal dam is located in Ropar in Punjab on the border with Himachal Pradesh, downstream from the Bhakra dam which is in Himachal Pradesh. The two dams together form the Bhakra-Nangal dam system that stores and distributes the water of Satluj river.
The physical takeover of the Nangal dam—which is controlled by the centrally-run Bhakra Beas Management Board (BBMB) that regulates the distribution of water to Punjab, Haryana, Himachal Pradesh, Rajasthan and Delhi—was meant to protest against the board’s decision to give additional water to Haryana from what Punjab claims is its share.
Nangal dam feeds the Bhakra main line, from which water is distributed through a network of canals downstream, including to Haryana.
On Wednesday, after a five-hour meeting of all stakeholders, the BBMB had decided to allow 8,500 cusecs (rate of release of water from dam) additional water to Haryana daily, despite Punjab’s objections that this be limited to 4,000 cusecs, which it claims is enough for Haryana’s drinking water requirements.
Sources in the Punjab government said that, in order to release additional water to Haryana following the meeting, the BBMB transferred out the Bhakra dam’s water regulation officer, who was on deputation from Punjab, and replaced him with one on deputation from Haryana. However, as news of the transfers spread and in order to stop the water from being released, a protest started at Nangal dam Thursday morning.
Addressing mediapersons at the dam, Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann said “Punjab has the deciding vote in the BBMB and a 60 percent say in its functioning”.
“What the BBMB did yesterday was dictatorial. They usurped Punjab’s rights, it was sheer goondagardi (hooliganism),” he alleged.
“Haryana has already utilised its share of water according to the water-sharing agreement between Punjab, Haryana and Himachal Pradesh. Now they are demanding additional water from out of our share. They should have been careful in utilising the water earlier.”
“Despite the fact that they have no legal right to additional water, we are releasing 4,000 cusecs to them for drinking purposes on humanitarian grounds. But they want more water to utilise for irrigation. We are also at the beginning of the sowing season of paddy, and our farmers need water,” he added.
He further said that “instead of being fair to Punjab, the BBMB is helping Haryana steal our water just because the board is run by the BJP in (power at) the Centre and so is Haryana”.
He also alleged that “Rajasthan, which used to have multiple problems of water-sharing with Haryana, is also siding with Haryana because now the BJP rules Rajasthan too. Haryana and Rajasthan cannot gang up like this in the BBMB against us. The last word in the BBMB is ours”.
Earlier, Bains had reached the dam with a large posse of police officials and seized the keys of the room from where water discharge is regulated from the dam gates. “We are at the Nangal dam now and have taken the keys of the control room from those who were managing it. We will not allow any water to be released,” he said.
Following Punjab’s “takeover” of the Nangal dam, the Haryana government raised the issue with the Centre, it is learnt.
On Friday, Union Home Secretary Govind Mohan convened a meeting of the chief secretaries of Punjab, Haryana, Himachal Pradesh and Rajasthan in New Delhi to resolve the matter. An all-party meeting chaired by the Punjab CM was also held in Chandigarh.
Representatives of the Congress, BJP, SAD and BSP addressed a press conference jointly after the meeting. Mann said that it had been unanimously decided that the matter would be resolved amicably with Haryana without compromising Punjab’s interests.
A one-day special session of the Vidhan Sabha has also been called on 5 May.
Also Read: Punjab slashing Haryana’s Bhakra canal water share triggers political row, Centre likely to mediate
Mann, Saini trade charges
On Tuesday, Mann issued a five-minute video statement announcing that the state had decided not to give any additional water to Haryana beyond the agreed upon share this year. He said the practice of Haryana seeking and getting additional water during the summer months for itself, dipping into Punjab’s share, was something that had been continuing for several years but would not be allowed anymore.
ਬੀਜੇਪੀ ਦੀ ਕੇਂਦਰ ਸਰਕਾਰ ਵੱਲੋਂ ਪੰਜਾਬ ਦੇ ਪਾਣੀਆਂ ਨੂੰ ਲੈ ਕੇ ਇੱਕ ਹੋਰ ਕੋਝੀ ਚਾਲ ਚੱਲੀ ਜਾ ਰਹੀ ਹੈ, ਅਸੀਂ ਕਿਸੇ ਕੀਮਤ 'ਤੇ ਇਸਨੂੰ ਕਾਮਯਾਬ ਨਹੀਂ ਹੋਣ ਦੇਵਾਂਗੇ।
…..
भाजपा की केंद्र सरकार की तरफ से पंजाब के पानी को लेकर एक और गंदी चाल चली जा रही है, हम इसे किसी भी कीमत पर सफल नहीं होने देंगे। pic.twitter.com/Kffw8ZQEoK
— Bhagwant Mann (@BhagwantMann) April 29, 2025
He also alleged that the BBMB was pressuring Punjab government officials to agree to sharing Punjab’s water to meet Haryana’s additional demands. He said Haryana had already utilised the water set aside as its share.
“Haryana carelessly uses all its water well before the water resources are renewed on 21 May. Around these months, it starts demanding additional water. On humanitarian grounds, for the purposes of drinking, Haryana is already getting 4,000 cusecs of additional water. Its consumption of its share of water is right now 103 percent. But now, it is demanding more water, a demand which cannot be met at the cost of Punjab,” said Mann.
According to him, the water that the Government of India will deny to Pakistan following the Indus Waters Treaty (IWT) being held in abeyance, should be given to Punjab, in which case it would release the additional water to Haryana.
Responding to Mann Wednesday, Haryana Chief Minister Nayab Singh Saini also issued a video statement and objected to Punjab’s decision. He said Mann was indulging in “petty politics” reeking of “narrow mindedness” by not giving Haryana even drinking water which had to be further shared with Delhi.
भगवंत मान जी, जल वितरण के इस मुद्दे का राजनीतिकरण करने का प्रयास न करें।
यह SYL नहर के पानी के बारे में नहीं है – यह पीने के पानी के बारे में है। pic.twitter.com/KRmtgUqLcI
— Nayab Saini (@NayabSainiBJP) April 30, 2025
He added that the government of Punjab had not raised any objection to sharing water with Haryana as long as the AAP was in power in Delhi, but it now wanted to punish the people of Delhi for not voting for them in the previous assembly polls.
“In 2022, 2023 and 2024, for three years while the AAP was in power in Punjab, we were getting the water due to us. Why did the Punjab CM not react then? Why suddenly when they are not in power in Delhi has the CM woken up to protect its water? That is because from the water released to Haryana, some share goes to Delhi as drinking water, which could not have been stopped as long as they were in power (in both states),” Saini alleged.
According to the Haryana CM, there was no truth in Mann’s statement that Haryana had utilised its share of water and was asking for more. “Punjab CM is misleading the people of his state,” said Saini, adding that on 26 April, he had a telephonic conversation with Mann highlighting the need for additional water and Mann had agreed to release the same.
“A decision was taken by the technical committee of the BBMB on 23 April to release additional water to Haryana, Rajasthan and Delhi. But when the decision of the technical committee was not complied with from Punjab’s side, I called you on 26 April. You assured me that the water would be released by the evening. However, when by 2 pm on 27 April the water was not released, I wrote to you to explain the entire situation again.”
“Instead of replying to my letter, you decided to issue a video statement in which you have tried to mislead the people of Haryana by twisting facts for selfish political interests.”
Saini added that if water was not released now, the BBMB would have to release excess water during the monsoons, which would end up in Pakistan.
Replying to Haryana, Mann said in a written communication Wednesday that he had not given any assurance to Saini in their talks. “Why would I offer such an assurance when Punjab does not have surplus water? It doesn’t behove a person like you who is holding a constitutional post to mislead people,” he wrote.
Wednesday’s meeting of the BBMB technical committee, which comprises officers from Punjab, Haryana, Himachal Pradesh and Rajasthan, had ended in the board deciding to back Haryana’s claim for an additional 8,500 cusecs of water.
It witnessed several heated exchanges, with the Punjab officers walking out after getting their dissent noted. At the meeting, BBMB officials were of the opinion that giving water to Haryana was “unavoidable”, sources in the Punjab government told ThePrint.
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Whose water is it anyway
The BBMB regulates water distribution from the Bhakra, Pong and Ranjit Sagar dams.
Allocations according to agreements signed by various states are 5.512 MAF (million acre feet) for Punjab, 2.987 MAF for Haryana and 3.398 MAF for Rajasthan. The allocation can vary in the same proportion each year depending on how much water is available in the dams, which further depends on the monsoon rains.
Each year, the water allocation to the states is decided twice—in the depletion period (21 September-20 May) and the filling period (21 May-20 September).
According to the Punjab government, Haryana utilised its allocated share of water by March-end this year.
“Early this month, Haryana asked for a daily 4,000 cusecs for drinking water purposes. This was agreed to on 6 April, purely on humanitarian grounds despite the fact that they were not entitled to any more water. An additional 4,000 cusecs started being released to Haryana from 6 April. By 25 April, Haryana had utilised around 0.104 MAF more water than its share (103 percent overall),” a top officer in Punjab’s water resources department told ThePrint.
On 23 April, during the technical committee meeting of the BBMB, Haryana demanded 4,500 cusecs over and above the 4,000 cusecs already going to it. Though a decision was taken in Haryana’s favour, Punjab government officers objected to the move.
The next day, the principal secretary, water resources, Punjab, wrote to the chairman of the BBMB objecting to the move. ThePrint has a copy of the letter.
“It seems the BBMB under your chairmanship is trying to take away our share of water and give it to Haryana, which is not acceptable to the state of Punjab,” he stated.
“Earlier, Haryana had committed that they require water only to meet drinking water needs. It is not understood how this drinking water need has now been increased from 4,000 cusecs to 8,500 cusecs,” the Punjab water resources department officer said.
He added that Rajasthan too has utilised water beyond its share till 25 April. “Whatever additional water they are getting is purely for drinking purposes. But it is clear that Haryana’s intentions are not bona fide. They want additional water for irrigation, dipping into what is the right of our farmers,” he alleged.
Why Punjab is objecting
Addressing the media at the Nangal dam Thursday, Mann explained that Punjab has no water to spare as the Bhakra, Pong and Ranjit Sagar dams have much less water than what they had this time last year owing to less rainfall than normal.
“Since last year, the Bhakra dam is 12 feet less, Pong dam is 32 feet less and the Ranjit Sagar dam is 20 feet less,” said the chief minister.
According to Punjab government sources, the depletion of water in the Pong dam was also due to it being emptied for annual maintenance of turbines. “Punjab has utilised only 89 percent of its share because it has used its water judiciously. Punjab needs this balance water for sowing of cotton and paddy,” said the Punjab officer.
Mann also told the media that his government had enhanced the canal network this year and every bit of water in Punjab’s share had to reach the tail ends of the irrigation canals.
Bains said that Rs 4,000 crore had been spent on reviving abandoned canals and water channels as farmers had been pulling out water from the ground for irrigation using tubewells. “In Ropar alone, there is at least 10,000 acres of land where canal water will now reach,” he said.
“We are seeing severe depletion of groundwater. In many districts, the level has gone down to 600-700 feet and all sorts of chemicals are now getting mixed with water, leading to lands becoming barren. We are trying to save our land,” Mann had said in his video message.
Political furore
The issue has triggered a political furore in Punjab. On Thursday, AAP workers led by ministers and MLAs held protests outside the houses of BJP leaders across Punjab against the decision of the BBMB. AAP and BJP workers also clashed in Ludhiana during a protest outside the BJP office.
State BJP chief Sunil Jakhar wrote on X that Mann was trying to destabilise the state with protests and clashes despite the tense situation with Pakistan. “We have always stood by the fact that Punjab has no extra water to give to any state but to stop water meant for drinking purposes is inhuman,” he said.
Union Minister Ravneet Bittu, who is from BJP, sided with Punjab on X. Not a single drop of water would be released from the BBMB for Haryana, he said. “And that is a promise from a Union minister to Punjab. Water is as essential to Punjab as any other state and our share will not be given to anyone,” he wrote, adding that Punjabis need not worry on that count.
He, however, also said that by raking up the issue at this stage, Mann wanted to derail talks between farmer leaders and the Centre because he did not want those matters to be resolved.
In a statement, Punjab Congress president Amrinder Singh Raja Warring Thursday demanded that the CM call an all-party meeting on the matter. He warned that people of the state will not allow a single drop of extra water to flow to any other state.
“What has been the rightful due of Haryana has already been provided to it and it cannot seek extra water when Punjab is itself short of it,” he said.
Shiromani Akali Dal president Sukhbir Badal wrote on X that BJP-ruled states of Haryana, Rajasthan and Delhi had ganged up against Punjab in collision with the Centre to rob Punjab of its legitimate share of water from the Bhakra Dam.
“This unprecedented bullying and looting of Punjab’s resources is a revengeful move against the farmers to destroy them as well as our farm economy, if not nipped in the bud,” he stated.
“Bhagwant Mann is playing a double game by assuring the Haryana CM that he will release additional water even while he makes appropriate noises for media consumption,” Badal wrote, adding that the SAD would start a mass agitation if the BBMB’s decision was not revoked.
(Edited by Nida Fatima Siddiqui)
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