The North News
New Delhi, May 8
The Punjab and Haryana High Court has ordered the Punjab government and state police to refrain from interfering with the operation and management of the Bhakra Nangal Dam, asserting that the dam falls under the exclusive control of the Bhakra Beas Management Board (BBMB). In a strongly worded judgment, the division bench comprising Chief Justice Sheel Nagu and Justice Sumeet Goel emphasised that “the State of Punjab and any of its functionaries including police personnel are restrained from interfering in the day-to-day functioning, operation and regulation” of both the Bhakra Nangal Dam and the Lohand Control Room, which oversees water regulation.
However, the court clarified that Punjab remains entitled to provide security to BBMB staff and infrastructure, “as per law.”
The directive came in response to three writ petitions – two filed in the public interest and a third submitted by the BBMB itself – raising concerns over Punjab’s alleged interference and delays in implementing water-sharing decisions.
At the heart of the dispute is the release of water to Haryana and parts of Rajasthan. The High Court directed the Punjab government to fully implement the May 2 decision taken at a meeting chaired by the Union Home Secretary, which called for the release of an additional 4,500 cusecs of water to address urgent needs in the neighbouring states.
The ruling also addressed Punjab’s right to contest BBMB decisions. “If the State of Punjab is not agreeable to any decision taken by the Bhakra Beas Management Board,” the judges wrote, “then it is free to invoke Explanation-II to Rule 7 of the 1974 Rules by making a representation to the Central Government through the Chairman of the BBMB, which if made, shall be decided expeditiously.”
While the petitions called for the removal of police deployed at the dam site and the full release of 8,500 cusecs into the Bhakra Canal, the court stopped short of issuing detailed instructions on every demand, instead addressing them collectively due to the overlapping nature of the legal questions involved.
The judgment could set the stage for renewed Centre-state negotiations over water sharing and interstate cooperation, in a region where water has long been a politically charged and ecologically sensitive issue.
