AMRITSAR: Shiromani Akali Dal (Rebel) President Giani Harpreet Singh on Friday visited the flood-ravaged areas of Ferozepur district and Harike Pattan, where he strongly criticized both the Punjab and central governments for failing to provide relief to affected families.
Accusing successive governments of “cheating Punjab” over river waters, Singh said the time had come to uproot such policies and demand rightful compensation. “Punjab is a riparian state and has borne maximum flood damage, while states like Haryana, Rajasthan and Delhi continue to benefit from Punjab’s waters without paying a price, ” he said. Singh demanded that Punjab recover dues on water supplied to these states, adding that such revenue could strengthen dams, embankments and canal irrigation while reducing dependence on depleting groundwater.
Citing the 2023 agreement between Himachal Pradesh and the Delhi government, Singh asked why Punjab’s waters were being taken “for free” when Delhi can purchase water from Himachal. “Since the PEPSU era, the price of Punjab’s water has never been reviewed. Compensation must be ensured for the past and recovery made in the future, ” he said.
The SAD (Rebel) chief also hit out at Haryana for refusing to take water through Bhakra during Punjab’s crisis, claiming it exposed how drought losses were unfairly pushed onto Punjab alone.
During his visit, Singh distributed ration to flood victims and inspected relief camps run by Akali Dal workers. He directed party cadres to remain on the ground for all forms of assistance. At the same time, he questioned why neither the Punjab nor central governments had released “even a single rupee” as a relief package.
“The state government has completely failed, and once again it is ordinary Punjabis who are helping families in distress, ” Singh said. He accused the Centre of maintaining a discriminatory attitude towards Punjab. “It is impossible that the Centre has no report on the ground situation, but its silence in this difficult time is deeply painful for Punjabis, ” he remarked.
Singh was accompanied by senior leaders including Barjinder Singh Brar, Ajaypal Singh Brar, Davinder Singh Sekhon, Kulbir Singh Matta, Amaninder Singh Bani Brar, Gagandeep Singh Sandhu and Manpreet Singh Bholuwala during his tour.