SYL canal: farmers Can’t till or sell returned land in absence of papers

SYL canal: farmers Can’t till or sell returned land in absence of papers

Chandigarh: Surinder Kumar Bittu, sarpanch of Manakpur village near Rajpura, becomes anxious whenever the Sutlej-Yamuna Link (SYL) canal hogs media limelight. The canal, which passes through his fields, is now a defunct one with dilapidated banks and wild growth. Hundreds of farmers, who were assured that they will get back their land in 2016, which had been acquired for the canal, are unable to till or sell the same as they have not received any related document from the state government in this regard.

In 2016, the SAD-BJP government passed the Bill that called for denotifying the SYL canal and transferring the land back to the owners. Almost seven years later, the farmers claim that the returned land is of no use.

“The SYL canal is in ruins with brick lining peeling off at many places. Bushes and wild growth have come up on its bed at most of the places. During the monsoon, the canal turns into a big water channel, flooding fields along its course on either side owing to breaches on its banks,” Bittu added. “The canal is still there. We have no means to fill it with earth as it will cost lakhs of rupees to level it. There is no water flowing in it and all it brings is misery to nearby fields,” he further said.

Fatehpur Garhi farmers allege that the canal is like a white elephant for them. “Just imagine this canal right in the middle of the village that is of no use,” says sarpanch Jagdish Kumar. “We will be happy if the Punjab Government allows some water to flow to Haryana. At least, we can irrigate our fields,” he added.

Farmers rue that despite assurances by state politicians, they have not received any documents to sell or purchase such land. “While Haryana leaders want to dig the canal, Punjab politicians are opposing it. Everyone is playing politics over the matter for petty gains,” said some land owners.

With the Supreme Court directing the Centre to intervene to get it completed, the issue is back to the fore after a gap of over 20 years when the Punjab Assembly had first passed the Punjab Termination of Agreements Act, 2004, to avoid the completion of the canal in its territory.

In 2016, the Punjab Cabinet decided to denotify 5,376 acres and return it to its owners free of cost. A major part of the SYL canal was completed in the Punjab territory in the 1990s after spending over Rs 750 crore. Only a small portion of it remained to be completed in the 1990s when the construction work on it was abandoned.