Barely three months in power, Chief Minister Prem Kumar Dhumal has begun efforts to iron out a harmonious relationship with neighbouring Punjab. For long, the hill state has believed that it has not got its due under the Punjab Reorganisation Act, 1967, particularly in terms of share in the Bhakra and Satluj Beas Link (BSL) projects.Dhumal has already held first round of talks with his Punjab counterpart Parkash Singh Badal to work out a roadmap to resolve contentious bilateral issues. Though the meeting at Badal’s residence in Chandigarh early this month did not touch upon some of the emotive issues relating to Himachal’s “legitimate share” under the Act, Dhumal apparently did manage to convince Badal on some of his “genuine” demands. So some of the decisions taken at the meeting included a multi-crore tourism project (a ropeway between Anandpur Sahib and Naina Devi shrines to be set up on BOT basis and 50:50 profit sharing); early completion of Rs 311-crore Shah Nehar irrigation project expected to irrigate 80,000 hectres of land on Himachal side; and construction of a road between Chandigarh and Baddi-Brotiwala (Himachal’s industrial hub). Dhumal agreed to supply an additional power supply of up to 200 MW during summers to Punjab and facilitate the state in setting up a hydro-power project. The Chandigarh-Baddi road is seen as a crucial link for sustaining Himachal’s industrial growth. That, in fact, could just be a beginning but Himachal has a long way to go. Himachal has been accusing the Centre of injustice and denial of opportunities. The main issue, which the hill state has been persistently raising with Punjab and the Centre, relates to non-implementation of the Punjab Reorganisation Act, 1967. The Bhakra and BSL projects have brought prosperity to beneficiary states — Punjab, Haryana and Rajasthan — but have uprooted hundreds of families in the hill state from their land and homes where the projects are located. What Himachal got was an ad hoc share of 2.5 MW power from Bhakra and a token 15 MW from the BSL. The state does not even get royalty of 12 per cent free power as has been allowed on hydel projects commissioned after 1990.“Isn’t it unfair to Himachal, which lost thousands of acres of fertile land and saw hundreds of families become homeless?” asks former BJP Chief Minister Shanta Kumar, who was the first to wage a battle for Himachal’s rights in 1977. Now a newly elected Rajya Sabha member, Kumar says he is going to ask the Centre for scrapping the Punjab Reorganisation Act if Himachal Pradesh is denied its rights.The previous Congress Government headed by Virbhadra Singh had taken a legal resource. To seek implementation of the 1967 Act, the Government filed a case in the Supreme Court. Later, the Assembly passed separate resolutions seeking Centre’s intervention to undo injustice to the hill state. “Legally, we are on a strong footing. What we are asking is our rights under the Act. Yet the case doesn’t stop the governments to resolve the issues through talks,” says Singh.
