Punjab to study water flowing into Pakistan

Chandigarh: Caught up in a water war with neighbouring Haryana, the Punjab government has sought a report on the water flowing from the state to Pakistan.

Punjab Irrigation and Power Minister Rana Gurjeet Singh on Wednesday asked officers of the Irrigation Department to make a consolidated report on the water flowing to Pakistan from the state.

He also issued instructions to make a strategy to tap these resources for meeting irrigation requirements of the state, a state government spokesman said here.

During a review meeting with the Irrigation Department here on Wednesday, the Minister stressed on the need of strengthening the mechanism to tap water flowing to Pakistan.

"The Punjab government would make its best efforts to make optimal utilisation of this water to meet irrigation and other water requirements of the state," he said.

Water from river Sutlej, Beas and Ravi flows from Punjab towards Pakistan.

In the past one year, Prime Minister Narendra Modi had stated that the Indus Water Treaty with Pakistan would be reviewed. 

He said the farmers in Punjab and Haryana had more claim to the water from rivers flowing in India than allowing the water to flow into Pakistan.