‘They did not maintain Yamuna’: Haryana CM slams AAP for flood blame

Haryana Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar has hit out at the AAP for blaming his government for the floods in Delhi, saying such a blame game is not in the interest of humanity or the state or the country.

AAP leaders have alleged that the BJP-led government in Haryana released excessive water from the Hathnikund barrage, flooding the Yamuna, which breached its banks downriver and flooded the streets of the national capital.

Speaking to reporters in Rohtak on Sunday (July 16), Khattar said the AAP cannot defame Haryana with such allegations. “Haryana can do seva (serve), but can never think of causing harm to anyone else,” he claimed.

Also read: Delhi flooding happened due to no Yamuna desiliting, says Lekhi

“This blame game is not good. It is in the interest of neither humanity, nor the state or the country,” said Khattar. “It can never occur to anyone to cause harm to someone to protect himself. Only a mean-minded person can do this,” he added.

“Haryana suffered floods too”

Haryana has clarified that the Hathnikund barrage does not have a mechanism to store large volumes of water like a reservoir, and if water is held in the barrage beyond a permissible limit, a “bigger damage” could occur.

Khattar argued that many districts of Haryana have also been adversely affected by the floodwater and his government, too, had to evacuate many villages. “Our Karnal, Sonipat, Panipat, Faridabad and Palwal were affected (due to the rise in Yamuna waters),” he pointed out.

About the AAP’s allegation, he said in a lighter vein, “It is like ‘hum to dubenge sanam, tumko bhi le dubenge’ (we will drown, and will take you along).”

Also read: Yamuna water recedes, but fresh spell of rains gives no solace to Delhi residents

On ITO barrage

The AAP has also alleged that the gates of the ITO barrage in Delhi, maintained by the Haryana government, was jammed due to silt accumulation. The party demanded its maintenance should be handed over to the Delhi government for more efficient management.

On Saturday (July 15), Khattar formed a two-member fact-finding committee to look into the jammed gates of the ITO barrage. “We checked our records. Money for its maintenance never went from Haryana. It was given till 2018 by the Indraprastha power plant, which is now shut,” Khattar said.

“When the plant was shut in 2018, the AAP government never said this problem could come,” said Khattar. “They are talking about it now that the problem has arisen.”

Two years ago, 6.5-7 lakh cusecs of water were released from Hathnikund barrage in a regulated manner, he said.

“On July 11 this year, 3.69 lakh cusecs of water were released. And it spread to six or seven Haryana districts before reaching Delhi; yet they (the AAP) failed to take out the remaining water in Delhi. This means they did not maintain the Yamuna. Unauthorised construction on the Yamuna blocked water flow,” he said.

“We have set up a committee to check their systems, including Okhla, ITO, and encroachments on the Yamuna,” said Khattar.

Also read: Over 25,400 people evacuated in Delhi since Yamuna crossed danger mark

Jibe at Mann

He also took a veiled dig at Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann for asking if states like Haryana and Himachal Pradesh would take excess water as many parts of Punjab were submerged now.

Without naming him directly, Khattar said the Punjab chief minster was a comic before becoming a politician, but it did not behove him to make such “jokes” now.

Khattar also said that had the Sutlej Yamuna Link (SYL) been constructed and made operational, Punjab would not have seen the floods.

“Did the water not flow in the half-constructed SYL? It overflowed and affected Ambala and Kurukshetra because of the half-built SYL. But we did not blame them (Punjab),” he said, adding, “Haryana does not do politics over natural calamity.”

Haryana also meets Delhi’s water needs, Khattar said.

“Their share is 750 cusecs, but even today, we are giving them 1,070 cusecs. The Supreme Court had said the Delhi government would pay for the additional water supplied. But see the Delhi government’s shamelessness; they are not paying for these 320 cusecs,” Khattar added.

(With agency inputs)