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The petitioner asserted that to verify that Delhi received its designated water amount from Haryana, flow meters were installed at Bawana. The petitioner noted a significant reduction in water supply during the summer, at times reaching zero cusecs, causing an acute water crisis for Delhi residents
The Delhi High Court, recently, issued a notice in response to a petition filed against the Haryana government, and its senior officers from the Department of Irrigation and Water Resources. The court directed them to file a reply within three weeks concerning the water supply to Delhi.
The bench of Justice Neena Bansal Krishna scheduled the next hearing for July 24.
The petition, represented by Advocate SB Tripathi, calls for the initiation of contempt proceedings against Haryana for the alleged ‘wilful disobedience’ of a High Court order from January 15, which required Haryana to maintain a daily water supply of 1041 cusecs to the NCT of Delhi.
Advocate Tripathi pointed out that on May 3, 2023, Haryana filed an affidavit declaring Delhi's water allocation as 719 cusecs, yet it was supplying around 1,040 cusecs by diverting 321 cusecs from its own residents. This affidavit suggested no plan to reduce the water supply, a statement the High Court accepted, thus binding Haryana to it and concluding the matter.
The plea contended that Haryana's reduction of water supply through the Munak Canal was intentional and carried out with malafide intent. It noted that a letter sent on June 9 to officials in Haryana's Irrigation and Water Resources Department, urging adherence to the January 15 order, proved ineffective.
[Inputs: Indian Express]
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