SRINAGAR: Chief Minister Omar Abdullah on Friday strongly opposed the proposed 113-km canal project to divert surplus water from Jammu and Kashmir’s western rivers, Indus, Jhelum, and Chenab, to Punjab, Haryana, and Rajasthan. He said the Union Territory’s water resources must be reserved for local use first.
“I will never allow this,” Omar said, referring to the canal. “There is a drought-like situation in Jammu. Why should I send water to Punjab? Punjab already has water from the eastern rivers under the Indus Water Treaty. Did they give us water when we needed it?”
He added that JK had long been deprived of its due share. “We were kept waiting for years on the Ujh Multipurpose and Shahpur Kandi Barrage projects. This water is for us. We will use it first, then think about others.”
On plans to utilise the water from the western rivers, Omar said the government is restarting the Tulbul navigation project and diverting Chenab water from Akhnoor to Jammu.
Omar also hit out at the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and People’s Conference (PC) for politicising the reservation issue. “PDP chief Mehbooba Mufti and PC president Sajjad Lone never raised this issue when they were part of or close to the government,” he said.
He said the current government had taken action by forming a Cabinet Sub-Committee (CSC) led by Education Minister Sakina Itoo following protests in December. The committee submitted its report within the timeline and the cabinet has referred it to the law department for legal examination.
