Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann on Wednesday said the state will seek royalty from Rajasthan for supplying water. He also claimed that dues of about Rs 1.44 lakh crore are pending, referring to a 1920 tripartite agreement under which Rajasthan began receiving water. Mann said Rajasthan had been paying royalty to Punjab for water till 1960, but stopped payments after that.
Talking to reporters, he mentioned the 1920 tripartite agreement between the British government, the state of Bahawalpur (now in Pakistan), and the then Maharaja of Bikaner. He said this agreement allowed Rajasthan to start receiving water. He added that Rajasthan is currently getting 18,000 cusecs of water through the Rajasthan feeder.
Referring again to the 1920 agreement, Mann said a fee was charged at that time for supplying water to Rajasthan. “Rajasthan paid royalty till 1960. But it stopped paying money thereafter, and Punjab also stopped demanding the same,” he added.
“We have worked out an outstanding figure of Rs 1.44 lakh crore, calculated at old rates, which is pending since 1960. If they (Rajasthan) say there was no agreement with us, they should not take the water they are getting under the 1920 agreement,” Mann said.
“You (Rajasthan) are taking 18,000 cusecs of water from us. So why have you stopped paying money for 66 years?” he added. Mann said the Punjab government has written to the Rajasthan government, asking for talks on the issue.
“The 1920 agreement has not been terminated. We will demand royalty from Rajasthan,” he said, adding that the Centre will also be involved in the matter.
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