The Punjab government on Wednesday demanded royalty from neighouring Rajasthan for water supplied for its irrigation and drinking water needs, claiming a staggering outstanding amount of ₹1.44 lakh crore.
Chief minister Bhagwant Mann announced plans to recover the unpaid water royalty dues from the Rajasthan government under a 1920 tripartite agreement involving the neighbouring state and the central government. He said the Rajasthan government owed this amount to Punjab for the water drawn through the Ferozepur feeder since 1960, for which not even a single paisa has been paid.
The CM said that according to an agreement signed in the 1920s between the state of Bikaner, the erstwhile Punjab, and the British, Rajasthan had agreed to pay for water on a per-acre basis. “Payments were made until 1960, but after the Indus Water Treaty, Rajasthan stopped paying despite continuously drawing 18,000 cusecs of water,” he told reporters.
Reiterating the historical context, he said that under the 1920 agreement signed during the British era with Bikaner, 18,000 cusecs of Punjab’s water was supplied continuously till 1960, but this arrangement was not mentioned after the Indus Waters Treaty. “If we calculate dues from 1960 to 2026, Rajasthan owes Punjab ₹1.44 lakh crore. They want our water but are not willing to pay our dues,” he said.
Mann said the state government has raised this issue with both the Centre and the BJP-ruled Rajasthan. “It is surprising that states demanding water through the Sutlej-Yamuna Link Canal remain silent on this massive pending payment. We have written to the Rajasthan government for a meeting to discuss this issue,” he said.
The CM asserted that Punjab would pursue the matter firmly, stating that either they stop drawing water from Punjab or they must clear the dues.
