Punjab-Rajasthan Water Dispute Revives Riparian Rights Debate and Historical Agreements

Indian Express - Explained · 21 Mar 2026 · 2 min read
Prelims · Polity Mains · GS2 Polity and constitution High relevance

Punjab CM demands Rs 1.44 lakh crore from Rajasthan for water usage since 1960, citing pre-Independence agreements and challenging current allocations under the 1981 tripartite pact, highlighting inter-state water governance challenges.

Key points

1920 Bikaner-Punjab Agreement: The current dispute traces back to a colonial-era commercial arrangement where Bikaner princely state paid Punjab for water from the Sutlej via the Gang Canal, establishing a royalty-based system.

Indus Waters Treaty (1960): Post-treaty, India gained full control over eastern rivers (Sutlej, Beas, Ravi), leading to discontinuation of payments and reallocation as inter-state sharing rather than commercial transactions.

1981 Tripartite Agreement: Allocated 8.6 MAF of Ravi-Beas waters to Rajasthan (largest share despite being non-riparian), formalizing supplies for the Indira Gandhi Canal system expansion into Thar desert.

Punjab Termination of Agreements Act (2004): Attempted to scrap water-sharing pacts but protected existing utilization, leaving Rajasthan's supplies intact. SC later ruled states cannot unilaterally terminate inter-state agreements.

[GS3-Environment] Groundwater Depletion: Punjab's groundwater extraction rate stands at 156.36% (CGWB 2024-25), highest in India, while Rajasthan's canal irrigation coverage surged from 26.5% to 78% of cultivable land (2022-2025).

Riparian Principle: Punjab argues Rajasthan, as a non-riparian state to Ravi-Beas-Sutlej, should not receive disproportionate allocation in water-stressed conditions, framing it as an equity issue.

Constitutional Mechanisms: Resolution pathways include Supreme Court's original jurisdiction for inter-state disputes or Ravi-Beas Tribunal, both pending for decades.

Way Forward: Establish a federal water governance framework with dynamic allocation formulas reflecting hydrological realities, incentivize water-efficient agriculture in Punjab, and create a dispute resolution timeline mandate for constitutional bodies.

Key terms

Indus Waters Treaty (1960)

A bilateral agreement between India and Pakistan brokered by the World Bank, allocating control of eastern rivers (Sutlej, Beas, Ravi) to India and western rivers (Indus, Jhelum, Chenab) to Pakistan. Relevant for GS2-IR as a rare successful transboundary water-sharing mechanism, though it enabled India's internal reallocation disputes.

Inter-State River Water Disputes Act (1956)

Parliamentary legislation under Article 262 establishing tribunals for resolving conflicts. Important for GS2-Polity as it highlights Centre's role in federal water governance, with recent amendments like the 2019 Act aiming to expedite resolutions.

Indira Gandhi Canal

Formerly Rajasthan Canal, India's longest irrigation canal (649 km) carrying Sutlej waters from Harike Barrage to Thar Desert. GS3-Relevant as a transformational infrastructure project that altered ecological and agricultural patterns in arid regions, raising sustainability questions.

Riparian Principle

A doctrine in water law granting primary rights to states through which a river naturally flows. For UPSC, this connects to federalism debates under Article 262 and Entry 56 of Union List, where non-riparian allocations (like Rajasthan's) test constitutional equity in resource distribution.