As the stalemate surrounding the Sutlej-Yamuna Link (SYL) canal - the focal point of a water-sharing dispute between Haryana and Punjab continues, the long-standing issue between the two neighbours is yet again at the centrestage.
The politics surrounding the SYL canal has started to simmer after Haryana Chief Minister Manohar Lal recently informed that in a meeting, slated for June 5 with Himachal Pradesh Chief Minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu, deliberation over the SYL canal water flowing-via-Himachal Pradesh among other issues will be held.
Ahead of this meeting the principal Opposition party, the Congress in Haryana has hit out at the Bharatiya Janta Party (BJP)-Jannayak Janta Party (JJP) led government, accusing it of involving in a ‘political gimmick’ to deflect attention from its failure to get water from the SYL for Haryana during its regime. On the other hand, in Punjab, the Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) has asserted that Haryana did not have any right to River waters from Himachal Pradesh being a non-riparian State.
