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Synopsis

The Supreme Court has told the Union government to undertake a survey of the land meant for construction of the Sutlej-Yamuna Link (SYL) canal in Punjab and give an estimate on extent of constructions carried out over there. 

A bench of Justices Sanjay Kishan Kaul, C T Ravikumar, and Sudhanshu Dhulia also asked the Punjab government to extend co-operation in the survey, or it may issue tough orders.

The court also asked the Centre to actively pursue the mediation between Punjab and Haryana on the issue.

"We are concerned with the execution of a decree for construction of the Satluj-Yamuna Link Canal in the Punjab portion as Haryana has already constructed the canal. The land was acquired and construction was commenced even in Punjab though there may be difference in estimates to what extent construction has already been completed in Punjab," the bench said.

The bench also noted the Punjab endeavoured to release the land to the farmers, which action has been stayed by it a receiver was appointed.

"We would like the Union of India to survey the portion of the land of Punjab allocated for the project to ensure that the land is protected, as the Punjab Government could not have released the land, their action having been stayed," the bench said.

"An estimate can also be made as to what is the extent of construction which has been carried out in Punjab," the court added.

It also noted the counsel for the State of Punjab did endeavour to persuade the court that with the passage of time, the availability of water has become less and thus, the share of Haryana being purportedly less and that can be satisfied by other measures.

"We may note that it has already been settled that the execution does not deal with the allocation of water," the bench said.

The court told Additional Solicitor General Aishwarya Bhati that the Central Government should actively pursue the mediation process.

The law officer assured the court to place all the information. The court scheduled the matter for consideration in January, 2024.

Senior advocate Shyam Divan, appearing for Haryana, said that there was an order of the Supreme Court for execution of the decree and things have to move forward and the only thing that remains is construction, and Punjab, of course, has to cooperate.

The bench said it would have to find a solution and the dispute before it is for the construction of the canal only. 

The construction of the proposed 211-kilometre-long canal connecting Sutlej and Yamuna was planned in 1966 after the re-organisation of Punjab. In 1981, a water-sharing agreement was signed between them to reallocate the waters of Ravi and Beas.

While the Haryana government had built 90 kilometres of the canal that fell within its territory, the work in Punjab remains incomplete.